Interference
by Metamorcy
Summary: Weakened and sealed, a different yet older version of Lloyd is forced to travel with the chosen’s group in order to regain his powers but he’s keeping more things to himself then he’s saying, a lot more. Two Lloyds! How will the world survive?
1. The Blooded Figure

**Title: Interference **

**Author**: Metamorcy

**Rating**: T (for cursing and violence, may raise to M later on)

**Disclaimer**: I wish I did but I don't

**Summary**: Weakened and sealed, Death is forced to travel with the chosen's group in order to regain his powers but the influence he's having on the world causes it to shift...and why does he look exactly like Lloyd but older?

**N/A**: I suddenly got the idea while driving

**6/04/09 this had been edited for spelling**

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Chapter 1

A figure growled in the darkness, surrounding him beneath was a circle, glowing bright red. Numerous lines were inscribed inside, all written in a strange language. The man, who had brown hair, narrowed his red eyes, his face and figure covered in the darkest part of the center. Another person was standing outside of the area, smirking, the light making parts of his face visible, a grey eye appearing from beneath the purple hair.

"What do you think you're doing?" The captured figure sneered, shooting a sphere of black light towards the man but the moment it was about to pass the circle, it dissolved into little sparkles. He huffed. "You did a good job in making this but how long do you think it'll hold out against me?"

The outside one shook his head, shrugging as if not caring. "Not sure, hopefully long enough for me to do some damage. I've spent twenty years researching to find a spell powerful enough to trap your kind and another ten to strengthen it just for you only. You're quite the trophy if you're captured, but the only problem is your abilities and magic. I can't have you killing me while you're still inside." He reached to the corner of the room, somewhere in the abyss, and grabbed something. Beside the man, the trapped figure could spot a statue, it looked like a white angel but there was blood dripping from the eyes like it was crying and some of that blood that had fallen into the folded hands was crawling down the arms. It appeared to be praying, eyes closed, arms at its chest with two large wings sprouting out from its back. It was a nice statue, one that someone must have spent years carving that out, however the red was never meant to be there. The brunet man turned his gaze towards the other, glaring and watching as the hand rise suspiciously, but before he knew what had happened, a sharp pain shot up his spine. His eyes glanced down at the spear that had slashed across his chest, grinding his teeth together in frustration. The item was held up with ease and the purple-haired man chuckled in amusement.

"Bastard!" The captured man held his wound, the blood dripping from it and along down his clothes. The bleeding didn't stop, slipping from in-between the cracks of his fingers, falling to the floor in little droplets.

The purple-haired person snickered, retracting the weapon. "Did that hurt?"

The other snorted. "A little, but do you think I'll allow it to happen again?" He smirked, the circle shaking, the light flickering on and off. The spear-wielding man's eyes widened and stepped forward, a little shocked that his life's work was easily being destroyed. The once-trapped figure disappeared, vanishing in a black light and the circle doing the same.

The shadowed man huffed in disappointment. "Damn, he got away. No matter. Thank goodness I actually placed a special seal on it as well as a spell to send his teleportation off course. Now, I just have to find him again before he recovers."

The darkness spread, engulfing the room and the angel within it.

* * *

Lloyd sighed to himself, glancing around the field with his brown eyes, checking the area out for monsters. He took another moment longer to observe, making sure that none of them were hiding in the darkness. Nothing, it was clear, no sign of them or any bandits either. He exhaled in relief and lifted his pack higher up his back, closing his eyes for a second to take a breather. His mind simply couldn't get over the fact of what had happened just yesterday, the memory still fresh and burning. It tortured him because it was _his_ fault, the flames, the blood, the bodies and screaming. His heart couldn't help but feel unleveled rage and sorrow all at once.

It was the destruction of Iselia, his and Genis' home.

His brown pools gazed to the side where his friend was trotting next to him, shoulders slumped. The white hair was slanted forward, covering his face, but Lloyd could tell that the elf was upset. It was admitting from him in waves, though who wouldn't be? His home had been razed down right before his very eyes and then got banished out of the one place he had ever belonged to. Anyone had the right of being disconcerted and it only made things worse when Marble's fate had been found out. As much as Lloyd wanted to place a comforting hand on Genis, he knew now wasn't the time.

The large beast, Noishe, beside him whimpered, nudging his head into his master's side. The large eyes peered up into the chocolate ones as if trying to tell Lloyd something, a message perhaps. But sadly, he didn't get it and continued on, Noishe whining again. The green and white fur shined dimly in the clouded sky even when covered in small bags. It appeared that a powerful storm was coming and fast but Lloyd could hear no thunder booming and could see no lighting either. Still, the monsters that lived in these parts hadn't emerged much; it was like they were all hiding, all except Noishe. The beast seemed calm, wagging his tail happily, contrasting to the depressed mood the other two were divulging.

"Hey, Genis." Lloyd suddenly spoke, breaking the silence between them. He was hoping that they could reach a House of Salvation before the weather came down on them. "I think we should rest soon and seek shelter. It looks like a big storm is coming."

Genis took this moment to follow his best friend's vision and look at the sky. It was darkening rapidly but still no noise yet. "Yeah, we should, if we're lucky we might be able to find a big tree or something to hide under since we're too far to be close to a House of Salvation." The mage then glanced to Lloyd, who nodded in agreement, and they dashed off together, praying to find something to shield them.

Suddenly, lighting blazed across the air, sending fear down their spines. It had flashed so brightly that everything turned a blinding white and the two had to cover their eyes from it. The thunder made the earth rumble and the red-clad teen had noticed that some of the small rocks on the ground jumped at the force, even Noishe was starting to panic. It took almost all of Lloyd and Genis' strength to keep the beast from running off with all their supplies and held onto his tightly. More light sparked, some far too close for comfort.

Little droplets started to descend and slowly but gradually it picked up speed. The small group of three started dashing across the field, the shoes/boots quashing into wet mud and splashing into puddles of water. The rain was getting harder, pounding down on their backs and made their vision difficult to see, it was like a thick fog had floated in, blocking their way. The wind was blowing against them, forcing them to pause for a moment to hold their weight down. It was strong enough to lift up some dead trees out of their roots, tossing them around like mere feathers. The two teenagers accidentally released Noishe just trying to cover their eyes from the dust and dirt.

Bad mistake.

The 'dog' started dashing ahead, panicking from the wild storm, ignoring the calls behind. Lloyd let out a frustrated growl; this _defiantly_ wasn't the way to start out an adventure. His chocolate eyes watched his pet from a far and noticed that the beast had abruptly stopped in the middle of the road. The twin swordsmen blinked curiously, observing as Noishe leaned over, planting a paw over something. The two young boys came behind him and peered down at the bundle before them.

It was a person.

Lloyd could see the drenched scarf, colored black, lying on the ground in mud. A coal-hued jacket, that was covering the body, had a bright red shirt or something underneath. His eyes drifted downward to the dark blue pants and noted the twin swords that were on the waist along with two large straps behind carrying something that appeared to be made out of metal. He was able to get a better look at the person when Noishe shifted him to the side though the visage was still facing away. The person had blood trickling down the lips and chin in long thin lines and coughed for a moment, more coming out. The chest had a gash across it but it was hard to see just how bad it was. Lloyd glanced down at his gloved hand; it was dark from the color and let out a startled short breath when he touched the neck for a pulse. "He's still alive…"

"W-What happened to him?" Genis asked out loud, ignoring the cold rain that was beating down on their backs. The puddle of water that surrounded them was colored crimson but it was fading away. He quickly remembered what his sister, Raine, had done to him long ago when he had gotten hurt and took out a long piece of cloth from his pack, tying it around the man's waist to halt the bleeding momentarily.

"I'm…I'm not sure, its probably best if we ask him. He might have gotten into a fight or something." Lloyd lifted the guy up and flipped him over.

Time seemed to halt in that single moment. All eyes broadened at the sight, mouths dropping wide-open.

"W-What the!?"

"Holy…"

Lloyd almost plunged the unconscious blooded man to the ground in shock. Though there was a little bit of mud and red on the cheeks (getting washed away by the rain), it was obvious as to who it was. The thick brown hair that defied gravity, shaped in curves, the youthful look, the eyebrows and lips even the structure of the face and the two points of hair on the back of his head, right at the neck. Lloyd was staring at himself, at a mirror. They didn't even notice that the rain that was pouring down was getting heavier, the clothes becoming weighty.

What snapped the two out of their shock was when Noishe unexpectedly howled with the thunder. Lloyd shaked his head, making a double take at his look-alike before standing up, raising the person to his feet. He noticed that the man was incredibly light, _really_ buoyant, much more than him.

"We'll think about this later! First we should find shelter!" He tried to keep his mind off the person in his arms and placed him carefully on Noishe's back, who whined disapprovingly. Genis helped by taking a glance around (he's not strong enough to carry the man), trying and hoping that there was something nearby. When he was about to twist back in failure, his eyes caught something dark in the distance, not too far away. A smile slipped onto his lips and pointed out to the object.

"Lloyd, look! It's a shed!"

As the elf said that, the twin swordsmen followed the finger and dashed towards it, Noishe once more ahead. Genis struggled to keep up, being the shorter of the two, and as they made a touch down at the place, the three tumbled in through the door, soaked to the bone. Lloyd quavered his head and ran a hand through his bangs, slicking it from his visage before shutting off the rain. Taking off the straps that held up his suspenders and unbuttoning the jacket, he glanced over the place, checking for the safety. Nothing seemed wrong, just a small room with some logs in the corner and a large pile of hay in the other. He did perceive that there was a small hole beside the door but it didn't look big enough for it to be threatening. There was only one window in the back but it was too high up to see, though it brought some light into the room. Genis wasted no moment in gathering the wood together and casting magic to start a fire. The heat of the blaze had an instant effect on the temperature, warming everyone up. The light from the flames brightened the room considerately.

Noishe whined, leaning down to carefully toss the man they had picked up on the floor. The flat 'thump' brought their attention back to the hitchhiker and took that chance to examine the person better. They cast a shadow over the body, staring down in confusion.

"What do you think, Genis?" Lloyd asked, pushing the dark brown bangs aside to view the features. He slowly undid the scarf and neatly laid it to the side to dry. He even took the swords and other twin weapons that were on his back, settling them beside the scarf for safety. After all, he wasn't sure if the man would suddenly decide to spring up, attacking in madness. They didn't even think about the wound at hand, they had more important things to figure out.

"I don't have a clue." The mage leaned over, taking a closer study at the Lloyd look-alike. He was attempting to think through all the possibilities while eliminating the ones that seemed unfeasible. "It's impossible for him to be your twin; he looks much older than you. Maybe you have a big brother?"

"I don't think that can be true true. If I had one, Dad would have told me." The swordsmen reached over, detecting something along the neck and pulled down the black jacket collar. There was a long dark line circling the skin; apparently it appeared to have been burned by something. As Lloyd fingered the area, a hand snapped over his own, halting his movements. A startled yelp came from his mouth. "Ah!"

By instinct, Lloyd tried to retract his hand but the grip was stronger. The man's wine-colored eyes opened slowly and glanced to the side towards the group. They blinked a few times then the grasp lightened, drawing back. The twin swordsmen placed his limb beside him, unable to budge away, staring at the mirror in shock.

The Lloyd look-alike sat up, the red pools staring at the two people. He suddenly tilted his head to the side and spoke in a calm matter.

"Who are you?"

Lloyd blinked, a little shocked at the sudden awakening and fell back on his ass. He opened and closed his mouth like a gaping fish and managed to say the first thing that went through his mind. "Hi." The twin swordsmen felt like smacking himself for his stupidity.

The Lloyd look-like glanced around, not bothering with the two, it appeared he was safe, at least for now. The light of the fire caught his features, giving his face a weak glow. He had a much mature expression and his eyes were cold and hard with a red tint mixed in (Lloyd's are brown, his ones are red) but not like Kratos' dark ones from what Lloyd remembered. The complexion was paler than his own, hair darker but even with all the differences, it was still wasn't easy to tell them apart.

"Where am I?" A worried look crossed the insipid face momentarily, glancing to the window.

Genis was the one to answer, drawing the older man's attention away from the rain. "You're outside of Iselia, we found you unconscious and bleeding on the road so we took you with us. Noishe was the one who carried you." Genis suddenly dawned upon something as he spoke. "Oh yeah, I forgot, we didn't properly take care of your wound. Neither of us may be good in this sort of thing but we can apply medication and apple gels."

'Apple gels…?' The man thought for a second before shaking his head softly, reaching down to the gash. "Don't worry, it's no longer there. See." His pushed his jacket to the side and lifted up the shirt to reveal his clean chest skin, unmarked. It was as if nothing had happened in the first place and the blood and ripped clothes were fixed too. The trio stared in curiosity and amazement. "Just think of it as special ability of mine, it's not easy to explain."

Genis narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Then can you at least explain us why you look like Lloyd."

"Huh?" The look-alike snapped his gaze over to the said person and tilted his head, leaning forward. He let out a deep sigh and shifted back, why does these kinds of things always have to happen to him? Either way, he had no choice in this matter or anyway out and began explaining the best he could. "How to do this? Let's just say I'm from a futuristic place on a different dimension." Everyone gawked at him strangely so he tried another way. "Listen I'm Lloyd but at the same time I'm a different Lloyd, kinda like we're connected. My world is diverse and I've been raised differently then the one here, that would also explain why I dress so strangely. And you guys too." The man raised an eyebrow at what they were wearing. Who wore suspenders there days? "And yes, I can tell that you're all wondering on that." The Lloyd look-alike glanced between the two, answering some of their internal questions. He could tell that they were trying to figure things out and continued on without care. "Well anyway, I got zapped here by accident from an enemy's trap. Does that explain a few things?" Before anyone could reply to that, a loud bark came from beside him and he gazed to Noishe, who was wagging his tail. The look-alike smirked, reaching over, patting the head carefully. "Ah! Noishe, I remember you, I used to take care of you. It was so long ago, I had almost forgotten."

The big ears flopped down.

The man sighed. "Not purposefully, I just had too many things to do to keep up with."

Noishe seemed to perk up at that, rushing over, licking the cheeks. The man didn't respond the same way, crying out and tried shoving the beast away. His hands were before him, stopping the creature from salving him from head to toe, though that wasn't working well as the weight was pushing him down. It wasn't until a little longer that the look-alike gained enough strength to tug Noishe off.

The kids could only stare at the other as he started rubbing his face with his sleeves, trying to clean the gunk off. "Ugh, so not my type of welcome." He spun to the two. "Now that _that's_ done, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lloyd…Irving but to make things less confusing, just call me Death." No one noticed the pause from the introduction of the name.

Lloyd nodded understandingly. "You already know that I'm Lloyd and that's Noishe."

"Genis Sage."

Death stared at the mage with an unreadable expression. "Are you two friends?"

"Yeah."

"I see though…" The wine-colored brunet muttered. "I don't really know a 'Genis' in my world. It's possible that you did exist there but on a different country."

Genis blinked. "So does that mean you know absolutely _nothing_ about me?"

"That's correct."

Suddenly with no say, Death glanced up, Noishe too, lifting up his large ears. Lloyd tilted his head to the side curiously with one hand inching towards his swords, not yet trusting this man yet. "What's wrong?" Noishe growled, glaring at the door, bearing his teeth. Death gazed around the room and stopped at the hay, quickly thinking up of something. He rushed across, forgetting about the others, trying to do something.

"Noishe, come over here. There's enough hay to cover your body." He called out quietly and calmly, nudging the beast over. "Lay down and I'll hide you in it. Genis, get rid of the fire, we've got company!"

"A-Alright." The elf did as he was told; figuring out what Death meant and cast aqua edge. The fire instantly died out, small bits of smoke fluttering up and some red sparks flickering. Death quickly finished with his job and tossed all their stuff behind the hay while grabbing the two, covering their mouths, hitting the back corner on the left side of the door. "Shh! They're here."

He narrowed his eyes dangerously, hearing numerous footsteps walking through the mud. There were about five, two heading closer to the shed.

A quiet whisper that was slightly drowned out by the rain was heard. "Do you think some idiot would go into the trap?" It was deep, defiantly a man's. Lloyd almost wanted to yell out an insult back but Death squeezed tighter. The twin swordsmen took the message, understanding while Genis gave an are-you-an-idiot look to his best friend. Lloyd returned it with a glare.

"Who knows, it's possible." The second one was lower than the first.

Death stared at the door. 'Pretty smart these ones are, using this shed as a ambush, knowing full-well that people would seek shelter during the night and rain but still, in the end, they're just plain thieves. Three of them, by the sounds of their heavy footsteps, are swordsmen; the other two is a mage and an archer. At least they've got a nice combination. If I'm going to attack, best to get rid of that mage, it'll make things more troublesome.'

Lloyd was fingering both his swords while Genis twisted around to get closer to the older man, feeling safer. He didn't know why but the person had an aura that said he was going to protect them no matter what and he could feel it just like he could sense the mana from Lloyd's pulsing body. But that lead a question to him, how come he couldn't sense Death's mana? It had the essences of a human but at the same time not. Genis didn't have any more time to think about it as the people outside spoke again.

"What if there's someone inside? If we open the door, it'll alert them." The first one said.

"Alright, then use that hole we made."

Death stiffened, his red eyes trailing down to the small crack beside the door. The light that had been coming in from it disappeared.

"Do you see anyone?"

"Nope, it's empty." The second spoke normally, loud enough to be heard over the downpour. "Lets head back, there's nothing here."

The three sighed in relief after making sure that they were walking away from their spot. Death released the two first but soon after, Genis tripped over a loose board and hit the ground with a loud 'thump'. Lloyd flinched at the sound, gazing down at his best friend in pity. The eldest groaned and immediately heard the thieves halt.

"What was that?" The first one asked. "I think it came from the shed!"

"Shit, they're coming back." Death sneered, kneeling down with Lloyd to help Genis up. He gazed to the swords that was at the twin swordsmen's waist and snatched one before anyone could notice it. "I'm going to borrow this. Lloyd, take care of everything here. I'll take care of this."

The door slammed open, the wood rattling at the force. Death could tell it was the two fighters that had been whispering and narrowed his eyes, his black-gloved fingers gripping the sword in his hand. Before the men could say anything, he rushed forward, slicing one of them across the throat with amazing speed before shuffling his feet to stab the other through the stomach. He pushed the blade deeper, sliding it in to the point where the end was out the back, cracking through the ribs and spinal cord. Blood gushed out, falling to the puddles below, coloring the clear liquid red.

Lloyd and Genis stared in amazement at their new ally, eyes wide with astonishment. Noishe crawled out of the pile, shaking his body to get the rest of the prickles off and went to their side, sitting down beside them. Death examined the bodies as they fell back lifelessly, slumping to the ground, unable to move ever again. Blood sprayed across the air, pooling around the two corpses, their eyes permanently widened in shock. The skin was paling at the drainage of scarlet and the downpour was washing the hue away, disappearing into the ground. He didn't give the carcasses another glance before racing to the mage, who was starting to cast a spell and split the woman in half across the middle. He took a deep breath, wiggling his nose at the sheer amount of blood that tumbled out and turned around in time just as an arrow was released. He smirked, bringing down his sword at a horizontal slash, cutting the stick right down the center. The force that was used drove the halves to the side, hitting two trees behind him. Death huffed, ignoring the noises from the cavern. Apparently, the kids had been impressed by the action, especially Lloyd, who wanted to try that trick later on. It was obvious to both that this man wasn't someone to mess with even with a handicap (using one sword instead of two).

Taking a deep breath again, the look-alike closed his eyes, drawing out one of his numerous powers and snapped them open in shock. He stared down at his hands before shaking his head, pushing the surprise aside and rotated his attention to the remaining enemies. Dodging a few more arrows, his blade meet the other thief's knife. He gave a little way seeing as the man was putting a lot of effort into the attack and stepped aside, observing as the idiot slipped from the water and quickly beheaded him. Death swiftly shifted his gaze, surveying the last person with a cruel smile, his left hand fingering the cool blade. As the archer raised his bow, the look-alike flicked his right, slicing an arm clean off without any attempt. It flew into the air, dancing above the trees then fell with a heavy 'thump'.

The rain sluiced the blood off of the blade, slicking down the metal. He stepped closer, watching as the archer collapse to the ground, cradling his aching shoulder, forgetting about the being that was strolling slowly. Death snickered; his voice drowned out by the beating and stopped before the man, glaring down. His shadow hovered over the person before finally stabbing him through the heart, watching with interest as the light in the eyes died out. When everything was completed and done with, he slugged it out, using the corpse's clothes to clean the blade and handed it back to the owner as if nothing had happened. "Thanks for letting me borrow it."

Lloyd snatched it, replacing it into the sheath. "Y-You're welcome." The older version of him kneeled down, lifting two of the bodies up. "Huh? What are you doing?"

"Getting rid of the evidence. After the rain stops, monsters will be attracted to the scent of blood plus if these people have any more buddies, I don't think they'll be pleased if they find them here."

"Well, that's true. Here let me help." Lloyd was about to step outside when Death stopped him.

"No, its okay, I'm already wet. No need to make things worse." He then whispered something to himself, something Lloyd managed to catch. "Plus, it's not the first time I've done the dirty work." Death kicked one of the bodies and headed into the woods, his mind trailing back to the battle. When he thought he had walked far enough, he tossed them aside without care and glanced at his hands, squeezing them tightly. The blood that had collected on it was now gone as the rain pounded into it.

'Damn, that trap did a lot more then just weaken me.' Death cursed to himself, glaring at the corpses. While he had been fighting with the thieves earlier, he had tried to use of his abilities to make things easier when a sudden jolt of pain filled his senses. He had felt his body twisting in horror, the insides burning and felt like throwing up all at once. It was as if a thousand knifes were carving out his flesh from beneath the skin. The man growled angrily, figuring out what had happened. 'That damn bastard placed a _seal_ on me.' A seal would normally be temporally and easy to get rid of but what the man had done was something _completely_ different. Although it held back his powers, he still retained most of his natural ones like speed but the thing was like a lock where the key to it changed every few seconds and there were thousands of them holding him down. And to make matters worse, whenever he wanted to draw his powers out even the ones he could use, the previous thing would happen (the flare of pain). Death groaned, if he was going to get out of this thing he would have to stay in the back of battles, going to the front would mean fighting and that can't happen while he is in _this_ condition. That meant he would have to travel with some people. He cursed again, screaming through his head. 'When I find that fucker, I'm going to cut him up into fifty pieces and burn him alive!!'

Death punched a tree and swore loudly, the chilly rain helping in cooling off his frustration. His eyes glimpsed at the two bodies and smirked, pulling out a hidden weapon, a little short blade swords and he licked his lips. He might as well use the corpses for practice. 'Let's do something that's more like me. I can't keep this 'nice' faze up _all_ the time.'

(If you're thinking of something disturbing, that's not it.)

* * *

"What do you think about him?" Genis suddenly asked, staring into the fire he had restarted. The trio was inside, circling the blaze for the warmth to get onto their bones and skin.

"You mean Death?" Lloyd sighed, raking through his head to find an answer. "Hmm, he seems nice and appears to be telling the truth. His eyes say so even with all that weird stuff I don't get and Noishe feels comfortable with him. And he doesn't _even_ like strangers in the first place so I believe what he said are true, though it's more of a…what-was-that-word." The twin swordsmen wiggled his nose and it finally dawned onto him. "Intuition."

"Wow, you actually know that word."

"Shut up!"

Genis just shaked his head with a smile, if there was one thing Lloyd was good with, it was his instincts. Death decided came in that moment, opening the door softly, hair and clothes thoroughly soaked. He slumped down at the side against the wooden boards, pealing off his clothes as if they were glued to his skin, keeping only his pants and long-sleeved undershirt on while placing the rest beside him (he had finished with putting the bodies away).

"Is everything alright?" Lloyd asked, casting a longwinded glance.

The man nodded his head, his expression drained. "Yeah, I'm fine." After a few moments, he leaned forward. "Actually, I have a request…Do you think I could…come with you?"

"W-What?" Everyone in the room looked at him instantly.

"I'm afraid I don't know this world at all, therefore I find it safer to stay with you guys until I figure out a way to get back. That is, if you don't mind?"

Lloyd twisted to Genis before smiling, already mentally agreeing to it. It wouldn't be too bad to have another person to travel with. "Alright, that's fine. We were kinda thinking about that while you were outside anyway. Now the hard part is convincing everyone else. Would they really believe us?"

Genis sighed, thinking of their reactions. "Probably not."

"Everyone?" Death blinked, crawling over to the fire.

"Yeah, we're heading towards the chosen's group. There's this blond-haired girl named Colette, she's the chosen one-"

"Chosen one?"

"Yeah, she's-"

Death listened as Genis and Lloyd spoke.

* * *

Hi. I hoped you enjoyed this start off and so let me state some things. This is slightly after the burning of Iselia if you haven't already figured that out. I didn't want to put it during the beginning of the game cause that would made things a little harder to explain with all those people and things.


	2. Heading to Triet

**Title: Interference **

**Author**: Metamorcy

**Rating**: M

**Disclaimer**: Do I have to keep repeating it? Is there any point now?

**Summary**: Weakened and sealed, Death is forced to travel with the chosen's group in order to regain his powers but the influence he's having on the world causes it to shift...and why does he look exactly like Lloyd but older?

**N/A**: Finally done with this one. Took me a while. Also all those looking for evil Lloyd/Death, he'll appear later.

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Chapter 2

"Looks like everything is clear." Death said, having just finished checking their surroundings for any monsters or people. Lloyd, Genis and Noishe were beside him, trotting along through the left-over puddles of water from yesterday's shower. The sky was clear with sunlight shining brightly and there was a heavy wave of heat upon them from the sun's reflection on the liquid. The look-alike had all his stuff on, his scarf dangling behind him, fluttering at his movements. Last night had been nothing but explanations and descriptions of his new allies, telling him as they spoke on how they acted and their relationships with whom. It was kinda entertaining to him, like he was learning something new. But while they had been explicating, he had to interrupt their speeches to tell them that he knew no one by the name of Colette, Raine, or Kratos (though he was sure he had heard the last name somewhere). All three (Noishe included) were surprised at that announcement.

"Man, today is such a nice day." Lloyd cheered, smiling, walking a little faster.

"Yeah, it is. It's as if nothing had happened yesterday." Death flipped his bangs back, keeping up with the group with ease as his black shoes splashed into the water. He had decided to share the weight of the backpacks, making things easier for the others, Noishe was very happy about this. His red eyes peered into the distance and spotted some monsters wandering in front but didn't say a word yet since they were too far.

Genis suddenly turned to him, studying him again. It wasn't the first time Death had noticed it, the elf had done it all last night as if he was trying to figure out some kind of puzzle. "Hey, I got a question, it's about you again."

Lloyd twisted back to them so did Noishe, who whined at the sudden stop. The look-alike fluttered his eyes and nodded, telling the mage to proceed.

"If you're Lloyd, then how come you have red eyes?"

Death blinked again. "They used to be brown like his but they changed after a while. I don't know why but I doubt it'll happen to you." He rotated to the light brown-haired teen, smirking when the expression turned into confusion. Genis took the answer in, still not sure on how to react to the man yet.

"How old are you exactly?" This time Lloyd asked, taking a footstep forward.

"Twenty-four."

"What?!" The pair exclaimed in surprise, not believing the answer. Lloyd was first to respond. "Damn, you don't look a day over eighteen or nineteen."

"Why thank you but I think you should be looking ahead since a herd of monsters is heading our way." He pointed to the group before him; there were about three wolves and two hawks. Lloyd and Genis reacted instantly, Noishe running off to a safe distance to watch while Death remained sill, surveying the cluster of monsters closely. The red-clad teen pulled out his twin swords, jumping in front of Genis so he could give him the chance to cast spells. The mage was already working on an aqua edge, chanting to himself, tossing the ball of his kendama up and down. One of the wolves ran forward, right at Lloyd, who blocked and did a demon fang to send it back. The slash slid across the earth, scattering the monsters into two sides. Death stepped beside his other self, yanking out his two weapons from the back (not his swords) with one having white metal, the other black, and pointed them at the groups.

Lloyd noticed this new development. "Hey, what are those?"

"They're called 'guns'." The black-clothed man spoke, stepping aside so that the spell Genis had cast wouldn't hit him as well. It landed a light hit on the three wolves but didn't kill either of them and the hawks were too high to be effected. "I'll be using these instead of my swords." He pulled the trigger on the white one, hitting a hawk that was coming far too close at the wing. It fell to the ground, squawking in pain and sat up, fluttering its feathers. The fallen hawk let out a loud screech, its beak wide open. The 'bang' had been silent so it wouldn't alert any other creatures nearby. Death mentally sighed in relief. 'Guess it's a good thing I had placed a silencer on this before coming here.'

Genis started conjuring up another spell, this time 'Stone Blast'. Lloyd nodded to the mage, running forward to slash one of the wolves at the neck, killing it quickly. Death's ruby pools observed the progress and noticed that one of the wolves was coming too close to the twin swordsmen.

"Lloyd, behind you!"

At his voice, Lloyd rotated around just in time to block an attack from those mighty teeth and claws. "Thanks!"

The black scarf on Death's back shifted at the wind change and quickly pointed his left gun, the black one, to the side without looking and shot over there. A piercing shriek rang out; he had hit the other flying hawk at the head, ending its life.

"Stone blast!" Rocks erupted from below the second wolf, flying up. The jades cracked into the chest and the beast collapsed to the ground, unable to get up again. That left one wolf and the fallen hawk. Lloyd quickly disposed of the hawk with a sonic thrust, piercing his right sword through the heart.

Death rushed forward, a bad feeling growing in the pit of his stomach and went to Lloyd's side just as he spotted the last beast. Apparently, the wolf wasn't exactly pleased about its companions being dead and made a desperate attempt on the teen. Lloyd hardly had enough time to raise his swords as the large white teeth were bearing at his neck, about to chop down.

"Lloyd!" Death heard Genis call out and was in between the two before anyone could notice, using his unnatural speed. Without really thinking, he slammed his right gun, the white one, into the creature's mouth, the teeth sinking into his flesh and narrowed his eyes. He saw that the wolf's eyes flicker something, apparently now regretting its action as Death tugged the trigger, blasting right through the skull. Blood shot out from the hole he had created, the corpse collapsing into a pile of flesh.

"Death!"

Genis and Noishe came to his side, Lloyd wide-eyed at the action. "Hey, are you okay?"

The black-clothed man smirked; the pain was nothing to him and flung his wrist to prove it. "Fine, it doesn't really hurt." Lloyd didn't take that as an answer and reached over, snatching the bleeding hand, yanking back the sleeves. His eyes narrowed, dropping his swords to the ground to help his other self.

"_That_ doesn't look fine, look at these." The twin swordsmen fingered the area where the teeth had gone through the skin about one or two inches deep. "Damn. Genis, do we have any apple gels we can use and some cloths?"

"Yeah!" The elf took out one, the size of a handkerchief and a gel, handing it to his best friend, who quickly smeared the item on the wound. Death didn't flinch at the sting, no matter how much it ached. The twin swordsmen then tied the handkerchief around the bleeding hand, stopping the crimson from sliding down the arm. The once white sheet was red and Death could only sigh, letting the two do whatever they desired.

"Lloyd." He commented for a moment, taking the red-clad teen's attention away from his wrist. "What about you?"

"Me? I'm fine, I didn't get hurt."

"I know that just by looking but that's not what I meant." Death sighed again, trying to get across the stubborn boy. "I just hope you're not thinking that _this_ is your fault."

"But-" Lloyd was cut off.

"Its not, I was careless and allowed the wolf to get too close. It's my liability for this…" The man paused, staring at the other, examining him. Lloyd blinked questionably, waiting for his older self to continue. "I think I want to talk about your _swordsmanship_."

Genis started snickering from behind, laughing at Lloyd's misery.

"Oh no, not you too." The teen exclaimed, his shoulders slumping, looking a little damage that even his other was complaining about it. His hands fell to his sides, done with the injury.

"Your skills are enough to handle everyday fighting but if you've going on this journey then you'll need to improve and change." Death gathered their things and handed them to their respective people. Lloyd sheathed his twin blades and placed an arm on one as if by habit, listening to his older self. "If you want, I'll gladly teach you some things later, however to be honest, I'm not a very good teacher so you'll need to ask someone else. For now, we should hurry, we're getting closer to the desert and I think we'd all be happy to make it to Triet by tomorrow afternoon."

Lloyd's brown eyes sparkled; they literally _glistened_ at this new set of information. Watching Death walk off with Genis and Noishe following, he wondered if he really could be powerful, maybe he could show that bastard, Kratos, something. He grinned at the thought.

"Lloyd, we're going to leave you behind, you know." Genis teased, observing his friend as he flinched, running to catch up. He glanced to Death and noticed a faint line on his lips. He was smiling, well, half-smiling but it was still impressive. To be frank, he had thought that the man was just like Kratos with no emotions what-so-ever but after being with him, he learned that the guy still acted like his childhood friend but matured in many degrees. Maybe when Lloyd gets older, he'll turn into him, Genis beamed at the deliberation.

No one noticed the smirk had altered into something malevolence.

* * *

Death took the job of the temporally leader of the group, his acute senses helping him as they got through some trees that were blocking their path. As he pushed some branches out of the way, his ruby pools glanced back at the three, who were following shortly behind before going back to the present matter. It was late in the night and the group was trying to find a safe area to rest for the day. He exhaled to himself, he wasn't much of a leader type, he liked to follow others more and just observe their actions. Death didn't know why but he felt comfortable with that. And as he shoved another branch aside, snapping the bark, he heard a faint shuffle from in front and instantly reached towards his left gun, his eyes peering into the darkness. The group behind halted at his pause, their hands fingering their weapons closely.

The black-clothed man peered into the shadows and he started inching forward again, seeing a flickering light in the middle of a clearing and stepped into it cautiously. Lloyd and Genis come out of the trees next, Noishe right after. A large cabin with wheels underneath was in the middle of the place with a fire blazing in the center, lighting the field. Barrels and wooden boxes were piled up on one side of the circle-like area. There was a yellow instrument, something like a guitar next to the boxes with a jar of something.

"Who is it?" A voice called out.

The group tensed, gazing for the speaker and spotted the person near the cabin. It was a man in his forties with short dark blue hair and wearing coat with brown pants. He stepped into the luminosity, not wanting the travelers to be frightened.

Lloyd was first to speak. "Ah, I'm sorry. We must have accidentally wandered into your place while we were looking for a safe spot to rest."

The man seemed convinced and the group relaxed when the features lightened up, their hands moving away from their weapons. The fellow spoke again. "I'm Nova. Right now, I'm the only one here since my family has went out. Who are you? Are you on a pilgrimage?"

"We're…" Genis started then paused unsure how to respond.

Lloyd continued it for the mage. "Pilgrimage? Hmm, yeah, something like that."

"I see. That's quite admirable for someone so young. Please feel free to rest here for the night." Nova smiled, glancing over the group.

Death hoisted an eyebrow at this. "You're just going to let people you don't know rest here? We could be bandits or something."

The man just beamed softly. "I have an eye for these types of things and I can tell you're good people so why not help each other. Who knows maybe you'll return the favor to me."

Genis grinned, liking the idea. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Just go where ever you want to." Soon after saying that, Nova went into his cabin, closing the door shut. Death heard the familiar sound of 'clicking', looks like he didn't trust them _completely_. No matter, at least they had a place to reside, secured too. Plus, the man meant no harm; he too had an eye for people.

"Alright, let's settle here. We might as well take up his offer." Death flopped onto the ground close to the fire, dropping all the backpacks he was carrying. The others did the same, sighs of relief slipping from them as they flexed their stiff shoulders. The look-alike grasped the handkerchief off, the one that was still on his wrist, and placed it into his own bag. Apparently, they had forgotten about his wound. That was good, it had already healed and he didn't want to make a ruckus. He took a deep breath, loosening his hands. "Man, it's been so long since I've actually walked like this."

"Like this?" Genis asked, preparing dinner, seeing as it was his turn (Lloyd cooked last time).

"Yeah, usually people use vehicles or teleportation to get around, it's much faster. Sad to say, I can't do any teleportation for now until I regain back my strength from landing here." Death took off his belt that held his swords and then the ones for his guns, laying them next to him. Genis stood up, leaving the water to boil and went to the look-alike's side.

"Hey, what type of technology is this anyway? I'm never seen it before, it looks like something from a human ranch. Is this magitechnology?" Genis asked, pointing to the guns and picked the black one up. The metal reflected the flames on the ground as little spots, fluttering around as the weapon moved.

"This technology is from my world so you would have never seen it here before."

"I see."

"Do you want to fire it?" Genis nodded his head, tightening his grip on the weapon. "Alright, but since you're not used to this type of weapon, the recoil _will be_ powerful and you'll have to hold it with two hands. Now point it at something, maybe a tree perhaps so it won't hurt anyone." Death stood behind the mage and made the two small hands hold the gun correctly. He glided the elf to point it at a tree behind them, away from the cabin. Lloyd was watching with interest, lying next to Genis, smiling. Noishe was doing the same, his ears poked up and his head nudging into his master's lap. "Now pull the trigger."

The mage did as he was told and tugged it, his body jerking back; landing into Death's waiting arms. The gun was now pointing into the air while the tree had a dent in it. Genis blinked his eyes, not believing the force that had hit him and twisted to the owner of the arms. "How do you use _this_ if the recoil does _that_?! Much less two?"

"I'm used to it since I've been using this for a long time. It's an extremely difficult weapon for normal people to handle. The stronger the recoil is, the more powerful the bullet is. Also, this gun actually has a name for it though. The black one, the one you're holding, is called Thanatos. The white one is called Bion." Death took the gun and glanced to Lloyd and shook his head, motioning the other over. He could tell instantly that the teen wanted to do it too. "Come on, I know you want to try."

"Of course!" The red-clad teen jumped over, taking Genis' previous position. Death chuckled at the cheeriness that was glowing off of the boy and neared him, placing his arms around the shoulders and Thanatos into the gloved hands. He helped in targeting; aiming at the same tree and pulled back once he knew that Lloyd could hold it still. "Alright, now pull the trigger."

The red-clad boy did as he was told and flung back a bit, landing into Death's limbs as well. He dropped the gun and gazed up into the ruby eyes and then at the hole he had just made. A moment of silence set between them before Lloyd cried out excitedly. "That was so cool! Can I do it again?"

Genis smiled, starting on the food he was cooking, stew by the looks of it. "Don't worry, Death. He'll just get bored of it after a while."

"Shut up Genis!"

The look-alike smirked. "I figured but I don't want anyone messing with them too much. Sorry Lloyd, maybe later." He leaned down picking up his gun and placed it back into the sheath.

The mage glanced up with a questionable look. "Hey, does that thing runs on bullets right?"

"Yeah."

"Does it ever run out?"

Death cracked his knuckles. "Nope, it's special. By using a magic seal I've craved inside, it automatically transports the needed items into it. It's not good if I run out of ammo in a middle of a fight. That could cost me my life." He stepped over to Lloyd, who had sat back down next to Noishe, rubbing the ears. Genis took that answer and concentrated back on his cooking, adding the ingredients in. The black-clothed man paused in front of the two and smiled lightly, kneeling down.

Noishe lifted up his head, nudging Death's hands, demanding that he scratched his ears too. The older man wiggled his nose but did so, his gloved fingers running down the smooth fur, pausing to pat the side.

"Hey, Lloyd."

The twin swordsmen glanced over. "Yeah?"

"Could you take out your swords and show me how you hold them?" Death's hand went down to the bridge of the nose, giving a rub there. Noishe purred at that, liking the touch.

"Um…Sure." Lloyd looked confuse for a moment and stood up, taking a few steps back and drew them. The metal glittered in the light just like the gun had before and created some swings with them. Death backed away (much to Noishe's dislike) and checked the grip.

"You're holding them wrong." He hardly had to look, it was obvious to his eyes and Lloyd could only stare at him in shock. "When you hold them right, the swings and movements are easier to make. Here let me show you." Death placed his hands over Lloyd's, shifting them around until it was right. "See, now do that to your other."

"Okay." The red-clad teen fixed his grip until Death said it was okay. He proceeded to swing it around a few times to test it out and found that the man was right. It _was_ easier.

"Told you, also the way you fight is too rushed and out there if you know what I mean. Sometimes you should break for a moment and examine the area to see if there are any openings for you to take, like surprising the enemy or see how they attack. You should also take advantage of their weaknesses and pauses to strike." Death then began listing the things he had noted during the battles they had gotten into. "You have a lot of openings, gapes and lack of defenses in your style. Your attacks and swings are mostly repeats; I suggest making different types so your opponent can't read your movements. The battle is over when they can predict every advance you make."

Lloyd's mouth dropped open in shock. "W-what? A-Are you trying to insult me!? I fight just fine!"

The look-alike groaned. "No, take it as advice. I'm just pointing out a few things I've notice. Right now, you attack like a beginner, no offense, but I bet later on with more experience, you'll be powerful enough to take on anything. For now, you should listen to me on how to improve yourself. Hey, at least I'm taking the time to point them out for you to fix, not like that Kratos person from what you've told me about."

Genis backed him up from behind. "He's right, Lloyd. You can show Kratos that you're good at fighting."

"I-I know that." The teen moaned in defeat, knowing full well that his other self was correct. He might as well absorb it in. "…Thanks."

"No problem. Since I'm going to be traveling with you, I might as well help you improve."

"Maybe one day, I'll be able to beat you." Lloyd grinned, placing his swords back into the sheaths with his hands on his hips.

Death tilted his head, giving a dark smile that sent a shiver up the two boy's spines. "That's _never_ going to happen."

"H-Hey, you never know, it could." The teen tried again. "The student is supposed to surpass his master right?"

"Lloyd, I'm not your master and trust me when I say this, it's _never_ going to happen."

"Dork!"

"You do realize that you just insulted yourself."

"_Shut up_!"

* * *

"Fucking desert." Death growled, stomping through the sizzling sand, standing in front of the group. He was the only one that wasn't panting as bad as the others, who all looked like they were ready to collapse. His ruby eyes peered into the distance at all sides and found nothing. Good, no one _here_ was ready for a fight. "Are all of you alright?"

"…So…damn…hot…" Lloyd heaved, his face covered in sweat and took off his red jacket, exposing his black tank-top but even in that, it was still bloody hot. And their water supplies were running low. "Are we…close yet?"

"…Not sure…" Genis moaned, trailing behind Lloyd, struggling to keep up. He stared at their now appointed leader (Death), who was practically leading them even though he had no clue about this world. Poor guy. "How come you can still go around dressed like…_that_!?"

"I ignore most of the heat but still…" Death lead off, slightly unwrapping his scarf and took his jacket off. He was wearing the dark red shirt with long sleeves but it seemed more durable in the heat wave. "We're getting close if I'm right. We should be able to see the town soon…or _now_."

As he finished his sentence, the village of Triet appeared through the illusions and temperature. Relief appeared on the two faces behind him and Noishe was about to make a run for it when Death gave a firm glare at the beast as a warning.

"Finally…" Lloyd muttered. "When we get there, I want to get something to eat, a nice cold drink, and then sleep in a comfy bed."

"Then we'll go the inn, I think we all deserve some rest. Still, it kinda sucks that we passed the House of Salvation along the way, no matter." The village was getting closer and it wasn't long before they were at the entrance. They had been lucky that no monsters had shown up for the rest of the day, all three of them were really glad about that. In the morning, the group had to say farewell to Nova and head off, Lloyd doing to leading until he got completely lose, forcing Death to take over (Skipping the HoS was Lloyd's fault). Genis had figured out, during that torturous walking time, where Colette would be heading next. He had given Death a short explanation, clarifying about Efret, the details and what-not. As they entered Triet, he heard a long sigh of reprieve escape and smirked at it. Death put his jacket back on, not feeling comfortable without it and headed on in but not before a yelp came from Lloyd and Genis. "What's wrong?"

"Desians." Lloyd commented, pointing to four figures in the middle of the city, talking amongst each other. They quickly hid behind Noishe, pushing the beast forward, Death too, seeing as he was told that they were after Lloyd (remember he has his appearance). Noishe wasn't really happy about this situation but went along with it.

The look-alike examined over the four enemies as he hid behind a stable with the others, sticking his head out to find out what is happening. He had gotten an explanation about Desians from the two, they were a large group of half-elves and would cause trouble but he didn't expect them to be dressed like _that_. Just who the fuck wears a metal helmet in the _desert_, unless they want to fry their brains or something, that's fine with him. Well, besides that, they were dressed in red and brown suits, three of them had whips in their hands and the last one a bow. He strained himself to listen in on their conversation.

The leader of the little group was speaking. "This is an order from Lord Forcystus. A human named Lloyd is on the run with an Exsphere. His identification code is unknown. Form a cordon in all areas immediately."

'Exsphere?' Death thought, never hearing the word before, he'll probably have to ask the others later.

Another one holding a whip spoke up. "What does this Lloyd look like?"

The leader answered. "His likeness and description are on the wanted posters. We're counting on you."

All three shouted. "Yes, sir."

They spread out except for one, who went over to a board that was close by to the inn and plastered the so-called poster up. The guy then ran to the side where the shops were, asking around while the little group remained in the stables behind Noishe. Lloyd groaned, rubbing his temples in frustration, placing his jacket back on. "Man…wanted posters and search parties. They're really serious."

Death turned to his look-alike. "Why are they after you in the first place?"

"Oh, yeah. We haven't told you yet." The red-clad teen exhaled, rising up his left hand that was holding some type of crystal on it. It was blue and covered the middle area of the hand. "They want this but I won't let them have it. It's my mom's memento and…they're the ones that killed her." A sad expression fell onto Lloyd's face. "I won't forgive them for that."

"I…see." The oldest of the group muttered, his ruby eyes twisting back to the area, still studying the Desians as they wandered around. He could literally sense the fear from the people when they got near, instantly guessing no one really liked them, mostly likely despise instead. His eyes momentarily went to the mage of the group and glanced down at the right hand where an exsphere was imprinted. Death noticed the difference between them but kept his mouth shut, he didn't like to ask questions unless it was necessary.

"We need to hurry and find Colette." Genis turned to Lloyd with worry.

"Hey, I thought we were looking for Colette to protect her…This is more like we're looking for her to get help." The twin swordsmen scratched the side of his face, his thoughts going wild from trying to figure things out. Noishe whined as if agreeing too.

This made the elf narrow his eyes, a little furious by the response. "Does it really matter why we're looking for her? You think too much when you don't have to!"

Death smirked, whispering to himself. "Lloyd does share a good point though." As the enemies left to head off somewhere else, he quickly told them that the coast was clear and came out, Noishe still in the stable since that was probably where he was going to be kept. They vigilantly stepped over to the wanted poster while the look-alike kept a watchful eye out. No one was close by for the time being.

A snicker came from the shortest in the group of three. "Is _that_ the wanted poster?"

Lloyd twitched, glancing between himself and Death. He didn't like the picture at all; it was basically a disfiguration of themselves. "…Are we this ugly?"

Genis started laughing and the oldest just sighed, taking two fingers to rub his forehead in irritation. "It's good. They'll never find you guys with this." He paused, grinning. "…I think."

"Come on, let's head to the inn, it's not safe to wander around here while the Desians are still about. We'll leave in the morning and maybe I can sneak out during the night to take a look around." Death stated, nudging the other two to the inn's doors but not before taking a long hard stare at the poster. He twitched at the image and glanced at the two, who were watching intently at him, wandering what he was going to do. Their eyes widened when he reacted, Death had tore the offending piece of paper right off and crunched it between his two fists. He twisted to the others with a smile on his face and they shivered at it. "Well, let's get going."

"W-Why did you do that?" Genis asked quietly, opening the door to the inn. Lloyd nodded, stepping in with Death. "Won't we get in trouble?"

"No one saw me. Plus without that poster, the residents won't be able to recognize us and neither will the Desians unless they notice it and put up another." He deadpanned, folding his arms with the waded paper in his hand. Lloyd and Genis gazed between each other, finding the reasoning in it and agreed before heading off to the front desk to get a room. The twin swordsmen was the one that did that task while Death examined around the area for anything suspicious and headed into the appointed room. He flopped down on one of the beds, happy that he could now rest his feet. The others did the same, Lloyd hitting face-first into his pillow and let out a deep breath, relieved that he no longer had those bags on him. Genis tossed his own backpacks onto the floor, stretching his shoulders.

"Bed…" Lloyd muttered from the pillow, burying his face into it. Death stood up and took off his own bags before strolling over to the red-clad teen with an eyebrow raised.

"He's asleep." He stated, examining over the boy.

Genis grinned when a thought came through his mind. "Hey, do you know anything about pranks?"

The look-alike could only half-smile.

* * *

If you want to find out the meanings of 'Thanatos' and 'Bion', look into Greek names.

Some little notes down here, between the first and second chapter, Lloyd and Genis obviously told Death about themselves (well parts) and the group so there's no need to question about that. If there is anything I missed, please tell me.

Also, Death does not have an exsphere and can't use his swords because of that blasted seal but he's not entitled to only guns, he knows other types of things but those will be his main weapons unless I decide to change that.


	3. Yuan

**Title: Interference **

**Author**: Metamorcy

**Rating**: M

**Disclaimer**: Do I have to keep repeating it? Is there any point now?

**Summary**: Weakened and sealed, a different yet older version of Lloyd is forced to travel with the chosen's group in order to regain his powers but he's keeping more things to himself then he's saying, a lot more.

**N/A**: Hmmm, most of the notes are on the bottom. Also I completed my dark Lloyd picture, if you want to see it, go to my home page and head on to Deviant art.

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Chapter 3: Yuan

"Hey, Death? Wake up." A gentle nudge hit the sleeping person at his side and his eyebrows furrow at the wakening. Another one came, a little up higher up this time, and he finally decided to open his ruby pools. It was dark, still night, and he gazed dazedly to the two with a sleepy yawn passing his lips. Death sat up, rubbing the back of his head, craning his neck until he heard a satisfying crack.

"What…time is it?" He asked tiredly, blinking his eyes and shook his head to stay awake. The two kids didn't answer, leaving him to find out. His garnet eyes glanced to the side where a clock was on the wall and they widened upon his discovery. "What the? It's four in the fucking morning guys!" His eyes narrowed dangerously, twisting to glare at the two. "Couldn't you have waited four hours more? I can understand if someone is on fire or shit but come on."

Lloyd spoke first, his brown pools staring at the older version of himself. "We want to ask you something."

Death raised an eyebrow, he was dressed in only his pants and undershirt, everything else was taken off, placed neatly on a chair nearby. Lloyd was the same and Genis had taken off only his jacket. It was cold in the desert at night and the windows were wide open, letting the chilly air flow in. He nodded, waving his hand, motioning them to continue.

"Do you use an exsphere?"

A twitch came from the corners of Death's right eye. "You woke me up for _that_?"

Genis shaked his head, his long white bangs twirling. "No, we have more."

A sigh came from the eldest and he slid his feet over the side of the bed. It was going to be a _long_ night. He suggested the two to sit on the other divan and gazed at them. "No, I don't use one."

Lloyd verbalized again, tilting his head to the side. "Then I think we should get you one, seeing as they make people stronger."

The man nodded his head agreeing, however… "That's true but in my situation; it would only make matters worse."

"How so?"

"Can't say."

Genis constricted his eyes, glancing down. "Then how about your wound?" Death blinked his crimson pools. "The cut is completely gone. I checked it while you were sleeping."

'Shit, knew I shouldn't have let my guard down around them. He just had to be smart.' Death mentally groaned, not sure on how to get himself out of this mess. He could use the same reason as before with his body healing fast but by the looks of it, they weren't going to believe him. Guess he was going to have to do some explaining. "Alright, I'm going to tell you something and you must swear to me that you can't tell anyone, no matter how much they ask or how close you are to them." The two nodded their heads silently. "Okay, I'm not _human_."

They glanced at each other, both raising an eyebrow. "Then what race are you? Half-elf? Elf?"

Death chuckled. "None, I'm an inhuman, not a half-elf or an elf or a dwarf or any other races you can name. To be exact, I'm a Maranian. A special group of people that looks and appears like a normal person but in reality, we are different. There aren't many of us in the universe now and the blood inherent is a little strange. Your parents don't have to be a Maranain in order to become one; it's just a power that comes to you when you're born. Anyway, our abilities allow us to use magic; do all sorts of things no normal person can do, like flying, walking on air or water, teleportation, have slow aging which would explain why I look so young (he looks nineteen), super speed or strength, etc, etc, etc."

Genis perked at the new set of information. "You can use magic?"

Death nodded. "Yes but only a certain kind. I can only use dark magic and a special one that only I and maybe ten others can use. Though, I can't tell you the type."

Lloyd's eyes were sparkling. "Wait, you can walk on air? That's _so_ cool! Can you do that right now?"

"That's what I was getting to. You see, before you found me, I was attacked and this guy placed a seal on my body. Basically, what it did was weaken me and shut my powers off so I can't fight like I was normally able to do before. Right now, at my present form, I can't really do much and sad to say, there's more to this seal then I first expected at the beginning, this would explain why I'm only using my guns. Apparently, as I found out, whenever I try to use my magic or skills, the insides of my body would start tearing apart and I would cough up blood from the pain. Sounds fun, right?" Death sneered dangerously. "Anyway, to avoid this, I won't use my swords unless I need to and I'll remain in the back of the group, coming up front when required." He raised a hand when he saw their concerned faces, silencing them. "That doesn't make me weak though, I can still do some things. My movements haven't been hindered or anything and I can still flex my body to do a few kicks. Does that explain some things?"

The two nodded, this time understanding more then when he had tried before. Genis asked the next question. "What's this…seal?"

"To put it short, it's like a lock with 10,000 keys that go to it but only one can open it. The bad thing is that this lock changes every few seconds with the keys rotating around. Then adding to it that there are millions of them holding me down, I'm having a bit of a tough time undoing it. Although, each one I open, I gain some of my strength and my powers back. I've undid a few but there's just too many." Death sighed; this was the most he had ever talked for a long _long_ time. "And this is where the exsphere comes in. If I were to put one on at my present state, I could very well make it harder for me to unlock my abilities, like it would prevent me from doing so. Plus, an exsphere raises your power levels, if it does that to mine, I could very well lose control of myself and who knows what would happen after that."

Genis just sat there, absorbing the information quickly. Lloyd was starting to get lost in all the words.

"And about the healing ability and the wound from before," He pulled out a knife from his right sleeve then pulled it back to reveal his pale flesh. "I'll give you an example since its better to see it. I'll cut myself. Luckily, its one of my natural abilities the seal wasn't able to take away." Death made a slash across his arm and watched as the blood poured out. It didn't take long after that that it stopped and he took that moment to wipe the liquid away with his sleeve. His ruby eyes watched the cut, Genis and Lloyd leaning in to see the skin knitting itself together, quickly too. It glued jointly and before anyone could blink, everything was back to normal. "See? That's what happens. It works faster for minor or small ones but even so, the major ones are still dangerous for me, they take longer."

"That's intruding; I've _never_ seen that happen before except in magic. Sis would be so happy to hear this." Genis muttered under his breath, finally starting to believe in Death's words.

The older man, however, narrowed his eyes at the words. "Hey, you promised not to tell anyone. Originally, I wasn't planning to say anything in this, I would have just avoided the subject and dodge it but I guess in the end, I couldn't."

"But we're both glad that you did." Lloyd grinned, bending forward, arms folded across his chest. "I mean, if you didn't, it'd be so hard to trust you and all."

"Thanks." Death stood up, stretching his limbs and gathered his things, wandering around the room. Everyone got quiet seeing as the two no longer had anymore questions left to ask and he took that moment to say something. "Well, I'm going to go outside and search the area since I can't go back to sleep now after all that. If I find anymore of those posters, I'll rip them down."

Lloyd perked, jumping up onto his feet at the announcement. "But you can't go by yourself, it's too dangerous!"

Death grinned, finally letting himself relax and truly express some of his _real_ emotions around the two now that he had gotten some secrets out but there were still several things he couldn't say just yet. "I'll be fine, nothing to worry about. Even with this seal, I still have my natural ones like my speed. Anyway, I'll be back soon, if not, just go outside and I'll be there. You two, on the other hand, should get more sleep. You'll be needing it more than I will." Before anyone else could say anything, he leaped out of the window. He felt the wind breeze through his scarf, the air was getting warmer, and it wouldn't be long before it reached its normal temperature during the day. Huffing, he dashed off with his unusual alacrity, rounding a corner, peering out for any Desians. There was no one else on the streets and decided to head to the message boards that were scattered around the small town. There were of a few of them with the wanted poster and Death instantly tore them down before wandering a tad more. It was so quiet, no sounds at all, just the wind blowing gently across the mud buildings and sand. It tickled his cheeks and sometimes had to close his eyes whenever a stronger gust came by. After exploring for a while longer, coming up with nothing, he soon approached to Noishe, who was sleeping peacefully until the large ears perked. The green and white beast stood up, wagging his tail, whining softly. He was happy to see the other close by; it _was_ lonely outside by himself.

Death smiled at the act, reaching out to pet the head. "I see, so even you can tell my real identify, I guess all animals can. Promise not to tell anyone, not that you can."

Noishe whined again, nudging the top of his skull into the palm for a better scratch.

He chuckled, complying. "Thanks."

"Hey, you!" A demanding voice called out from behind. The black-clothed man twisted to the side, glaring coldly at the people for the interruption. "You're that man on the wanted posters!"

'Damn, Desians.' He growled, his fingers inching towards his guns but then hesitated. Should he _really_ use his guns or swords for this battle? Plus, it was too close to the population, he didn't want to be seen or make a fuss. As he pondered of this, he didn't get a chance to go any further as one of the men (a group of five) came running up to him, sword drawn out. A smirk crossed his face and suddenly bolted, routing out to the further parts of the town. The men followed, cursing him out, weapons all draw. Death could tell by the red uniforms and by the reflection of the moonlight on the helmets that they were right behind, sometimes having to slow down to a jog so they could keep up. He was teasing them and was damn well enjoying it. Once he got to a spot far away from public, abandoned by people, he stopped, spiraling his attention back to the group.

The smile twisted to a sick grin, tugging out his swords, finally having decided to use them for this battle. "So who's going to go first?"

His scarf fluttered in the cool wind, the sun light rising up in the horizons, the moon declining on the opposite side of the other. Shadows danced on his pale face, his hair creating it. The same person that had started the attack, rushed forward again, the others surrounding him. Death looked unconcerned, his blades glittering in the luminosity, the black handle blending in with his gloves. He dodged to the side, the sword missing him by a foot and spun around, driving the tip of his own into the back and through the chest, snapping the spine into two. The half-elf coughed up blood, eyes in shock, and Death could hear the breaths growing heavy and weak. He, to conclude the person's life, released his grip on the blade, letting the man tumble to the ground, a pool of red growing on the golden sand. It tainted it, like white with black.

"I suppose this will be good practice to see how much I've undone." He muttered to himself, jumping up to avoid another strike. Doing a spin in mid-air, he raised his foot and slammed the heel of his shoe into one of the Desian's head. He heard a recognizable snap and used the body to get his balance, soaring back, doing a summersault. The black-clocked man landed on the earth with elegance and without a sound, his left sword in his hand. He tossed it to the other, knowing he would fighter better if he did. The last three stared at each other before settling on attacking together. Death just sighed, stepping back and making a quick chant to finish this.

"O twisted door of distortion, open wide!" He began, eyes watching for the perfect moment to release the spell. It came a split second after. "Negative gate!"

A large sphere formed in the middle of the group, catching them all at once. It glowed purple and blades from it dashed out sharply, cutting anyone that got too near. The center of the attack was darker, shimmering sinisterly with small sparks of electricity edging out. Blood splattered across the floor, the blades slicing right through them as if they were made of butter. All three men fell, dead, with the wounds that were all over their bodies, bleeding profoundly, and Death strolled forward, heading over to the first corpse. His boots squashed into the dark liquid, creating ripples in the puddle. He reached for his sword that's been dug into the Desian's chest and yanked it out roughly, letting a little bit of crimson spray out. He jumped back in time to evade it and examined over the mess he had created. Kneeling down, he reached through the carcass' pockets, searching for something he could use and finally pulled out a bag. It jiggled and he distinguished it as money. Death smirked, opening it up to see how much there was and quickly counted. There was _more_ than enough to buy some things and it wasn't as if the dead were going to use it anyway, right?

* * *

"Lloyd! Genis! Over here!" Death called out, jogging towards the two. Lloyd glanced up, having just left the inn with the mage right behind at nine o'clock. He waved half-heartedly, waiting patiently for the man to come over.

"Did anything happen? You didn't come back." The red-clad teen asked, watching as Death's footsteps halted near him.

"Something like that. I fought some Desians and took down all the wanted posters for now but I didn't see anything interesting along the way." He sighed, folding his arms, leaning to the side. "Anyway, if we're going to head back out into the desert, we should update out equipment and get some more water supplies. As well as find some information on Colette's whereabouts, who I'm pretty sure is no longer in town. And since you guys came out so late, I've already gather the gels for the trip ahead of time."

"Oh, thanks." Genis nodded approvingly, noting the backpack that was at Death's side. They waved at Noishe, who was still in the shelter, when they passed by, heading into the market streets where crowds of people were hanging about. The sun was right in the middle of the sky, heat bearing down on their small bodies. Sweat tinkled down their cheeks, Death having the least of the effect. Most people in town were dressed in garments, mostly white or tan, covering their entire body, probably for protection from UV-rays and sand. There were a couple of visitors in town too by the standoffish of their clothes just like themselves. A few buildings near the entrance were destroyed and they talked to the residents, who told them that the Desians had done it. Death sniffed the air and smelled the strong scent of copper, blood. He licked his lips at it and then snapped himself out of his state, shaking his head.

Later on, he found a little hut with a gape in the wall. Genis glared at it fumingly but Lloyd could only sweatdrop at the scene, recognizing the shape. Death heard them mutter the words 'school' and 'Colette' but let it off, having a gut feeling about what they meant or perhaps he already knew. Death just smirked, keeping the information in for the time being.

While walking down the stales, he decided to buy some new weapons for Lloyd, finding his old metal swords worthless in this type of area.

"Its alright, I'm okay with my old ones." The teen argued, noticing the price of the 'Knight's Sabers'.

Death wiggled his nose, a habit he was now creating and shaked his head. "No, its not. A plain metal sword can't kill enemies that easily. You won't be able to make a clean slice with those dulled edges; I only managed to because I applied a lot of force onto the ends. Plus, you're at the front lines, those that need the most advance weapons. If the front was to fall, the back will soon follow and I'd rather not start coughing up blood to clean up a mess." He grabbed the new swords and shoved them forcefully into Lloyd's stomach. "I can't fight up front that much and Genis isn't good in physical attacks, we have to rely on you while we give you backup. Got that?"

"Well…" The red-clad swordsmen droned off, unable to find a retort for _that_. Genis could only snicker in agreement, finding truth in Death's argument. Lloyd sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Fine, you win."

He handed over his old ones, replacing it with the Knight's Sabers, hooking them onto his belt. He unsheathed them instantly, trying out the holds and slashes, getting a feel for the swings. When he got adjusted to the right movements, he replaced them back into their previous state.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

Genis blinked his eyes, questioning something. "Hey, wait, where did you get that money? If I remember correctly, you came here with nothing."

"Oh, when we were fighting some monsters, they dropped some and I took a couple from the Desians." Death confirmed it like an everyday thing.

"I…see."

The group continued to wonder the market, sometimes separating for a few minutes before regrouping together. It was too dangerous to go divided ways on their own and the next time they came back, Death grabbed them, pulling the group towards the entrance. "I just got some good information; apparently a group of three went west of the village yesterday in the morning. There were two girls, one with blond hair, the other white, and one scary man. Do you think that could that be them?"

The two grinned in happiness. "Yep, sounds just like them. Let's-"

"Wait!"

The three flinched, turning their heads to the speaker that shouted at them. Three Desians stood there, one of them holding a wanted poster in their hands. Death growled, seems like they had to keep them on themselves after figuring out that they were being torn down. He cursed his luck and reached for his guns, instantly preparing for battle. The exit was right behind them, they could make it if they made a run for it. The people in the streets scattered, running away from the group of half-elves, fear written all over their faces.

"Doesn't he look like the guy from the wanted poster?" One of them asked but then tilted his head, staring at Death curiously. "But hey, look there's two of them!"

"Yeah, you're right." The one holding the picture commented, glancing down at the paper then back up at the two. "But I think it's the one in red, he looks more like him."

Genis snickered mischievously, nudging Lloyd at the side. "Good for you, Lloyd. They say you're good looking." The mage looked like he was going to burst out laughing at any moment, covering his mouth.

"Do we really look that bad?" Lloyd gazed over to Death then to the Desians with a sigh, shoulders slouching.

"No, just you." The eldest smirked, folding his arms with the weapons in hand.

Lloyd's mouth was wide open as if in shock. He wanted to retort but couldn't find the words for it. Genis busted out in laugher, almost loosing his breath.

The three half-elves didn't take any notice of the conversation and pointed to the red-clad teen with a finger. "You must be Lloyd!"

It was at that moment that the twin swordsmen bounced back. "…Yeah, that's right."

Genis gazed over with shock and amazement. Death appeared the same, his fingers drumming the trigger. "Hey, what about your usual 'Who are you to ask for my name' thing?"

"I'm not even going to bother."

"Wow, that's the first." Death commented, he had known this 'Lloyd' for what? A few days and he had already memorized most of the personality, not that it was hard to see.

"Shut up!"

The third Desian smirked, ripping the poster out of the other one's hand and waved it to the group. "Heheh…I guess you can't run away with a poster of your face everywhere you go. It makes our job easier, you know."

Lloyd fumes, leaning forward, fists rose. "…You're starting to piss me off!"

The bowmen pointed to them. "Get him!"

Death acted quickly, shooting one of the men in the head but the helmet was strong enough to bounce it off, leaving an imprint. He cursed his luck but at least it knocked the person back a few steps. The bowman aimed carefully, right at Lloyd, who was blocking the other swordsmen's blade from cutting his head off. Genis was casting a spell in the back but Death didn't bother to know, he tried to keep the bowmen from firing the arrow but he came too late. As one got released, his eyes watched it fly before aiming vigilantly and pulled the trigger, the bullet hitting the tip of it, sending the arrow off its mark. He rotated just in time to lean back, letting a sword glide over his chest, the blade belonging to the person he had shot at the helmet earlier. Lloyd made a 'Sonic Thrust', piercing his sword into the Desian's stomach before yanking it out, heading off to attack another one. Genis decided at this time to release his spell, sending 'Wind Blade' over at the bowman, who was quickly trying to load another round. Death watched as the blades sliced through the body but it didn't completely kill the half-elf. He narrowed his eyes and pulled the activator again, a shell going right through the neck. The man squirmed a bit before collapsing, taking his last few breaths. Lloyd dealt with the last one quickly, cutting him across the chest, a bit of blood collecting on the steel. He stepped back, sheathed his swords and raised a fist into the air. The teen was taking this as a victory, grinning widely and Death could only sigh.

"All talk." He cheered, running over to Genis.

Death sighed again, placing his guns away. "Lloyd, you're letting your guard down, you're going to regret it one day. And when that happens, I'll be saying 'I told you so'."

Lloyd pouted, puffing out his cheeks. "Oh come on, don't be so stingy! You're acting like Kratos."

"I'd rather not be compared to _him_. I just have this feeling that something bad is going to-"

"Whoa!" A ball of electricity came from behind, hitting Lloyd directly at the back, sending jolts of it up his spine. He glowed purple for a moment as the current went through his entire body before letting up, collapsing out-cold on the sandy ground.

"-happen…" Death finished, refolding his arms, before cursing. "Shit! I hate it when I'm right. Well, Lloyd, I told you so." He twisted to the people that had done the deed, sneering at them. There were about three of them (two in the game), blocking the entrance and it didn't take long before they were cornered. Death muttered sarcastically to himself, he wanted to fight but he held back. "Well, this is just great."

Genis started panicking, running over to the older man's side. They surveyed as one of the men pick Lloyd up, using him as a hostage. The two tensed, Death slanting his eyes, about to take drastic measures. The men stopped him before that happened.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. If you come along quietly, your friend as well as you two will be left unharmed." The first one spoke and it didn't take long before he knew he could nothing, holding up his hands.

"Fine, you win."

They went walking, heading off into the desert, two Desians in front, one carrying Lloyd while the last one was at the back. The two didn't say a word to each other and the town, Triet, disappeared in the horizon. There was nothing here but heat and sand and sometimes small winds would blow, forcing Death and Genis to cover their faces. The black-clothed man gazed into the distance, it wouldn't be long before they reached the base, wherever that was. He then glanced down at Genis, who was trying to hold back his fidgeting. The mage was scared, well, he had reasons to be.

"Hey, Genis." Death whispered during the air stream, unable to be heard by the half-elves.

"Y-Yeah."

"I'm going to try and make a break for it."

"What?!" Genis screamed, all three heads turning to him. He twitched nervously and his ally just glared, telling him to be quiet. He lowered his voice, speaking to the man. "What are you talking about? What about me?"

"I'm going to see if I can go and get help or at least keep a close watch on you guys from a far. I need someone to stay here, if both of us leave, none of us will know the location of where they're heading. Is that okay with you? Or do you have a better one?"

Genis thought for a second, wondering about what could happen over his head. He finally sighed, giving up though he was still trying to get over the astonishment of meeting such a mature version of Lloyd, Death really _was_ different. Genis mentally beamed at the thought, maybe when the twin swordsmen grows up, he'll be more like his older self. He couldn't help but make a comment on it. "You know, you're not like Lloyd at all. He likes to rush into things."

"You never know, he might one day grow up but I doubt he'll ever become entirely me though…I'm pretty sure at that." Death smiled sadly, his scarf flapping in the wind.

"What makes you say that?" Genis was starting to get curious about this person, more so then the danger around him.

"Unlike him, I'm a murderer. I've killed more people then the Desians and you ever will." He whispered, continuing on as if nothing was wrong and finally glanced over to the shocked mage. Letting a grin appear on his lips, he nodded. "Well, I'll be going on. I'll see you later."

One moment Death was there, the next he was dashing across the sands, faster than an average person. No one noticed his disappearance until it was too late and by that time he was already gone, vanishing into the dunes. Death jumped behind a large rock in the distance and gazed back, eyes peering out from his cover. He could see the men all startled at his act, Genis still had that astounded appearance on his facade. After a while, the group gathered together continuing on. He sighed in relief and leaned back against the hot surface, thinking of what to do next.

Now, you're all wondering why he wasn't getting help and that was because he _wasn't_. He had no plans to. Yeah, how would this little scene go if he just found the chosen's group and told them that Genis and his younger version was endanger. Fuck, that wasn't going to go well and no matter how many times it went over his mind, there was just no way they'll believe him. He'll probably get scolded by Kratos and Raine for leaving Iselia (as said by the two kids) then things will go downhill and in the end, he'll be unable to explain the situation. Ultimately, Genis was the only one that could do it. Death groaned, rubbing the back of his head, questioning just how everything was going to work out ultimately. Sooner or later, he was going to get found out about what he knew. Well, he'll just have to keep up his appearances and play dumb until the final stage.

* * *

Death dashed a few yards forward to the group of half-elves and the two that were on watch duty. He spotted something coming towards him from the opposite direction, approaching closer and when the green and white fur became clearer, he distinguished it. Waving his hand, Noishe ran faster, trotting when getting close enough. The beast whined, staring at him in the eyes.

"Sorry about them getting into this mess, I should have seen it coming. Anyway, Genis should be released soon. I doubt they'll want to take him into custody. They have no need for him." He saw the building of the base not too far, all three entering with Lloyd. Genis was outside, before scampering away, right towards them. Noishe was about to sprint over but Death held him back. "No, they'll spot you."

The little boy with white hair jogged nearer and soon saw the two, kneeling down. "Noishe! You followed us!"

"Yeah, he came after you." Death nodded, folding his arm, slumping further down into the sand to hide his clothes. Black and tan just didn't go well together. Genis followed suit, sitting in Indian-style, patting Noishe.

"What are we going to do?" The mage asked, glancing back at the base. "I honestly think we should go and find the others first."

"That's all well and good but what about me?"

The two gazed over curiously. "What about you?"

"Helloooo?" He pointed to his face, trying to make a point.

"Oh…right." Genis sighed, the things clicking in his mind and glanced away. "So I guess I have to be the one to find them."

Death nodded. "Yeah, it'd be harder for them to believe you if I'm there. They'll probably look at you as if you're crazy saying that Lloyd is right here. Just say that Lloyd has gotten captured by the Desians and they'll believe you instantly knowing that you're never without him. Just tell them about me along the way so they won't be completely surprised when they see me with Lloyd." He sighed, rubbing the back of his head, okay, that was becoming a habit too. "Sorry for putting all of this on you at once. It must be hard."

"No, its okay, I understand completely…but wait!" The mage lifted up head so fast that Death thought he had heard a snap. "Don't tell me you're going to-"

"Yeah, I'm going after Lloyd. I know where the chosen's group is currently, if you head there and come back, you should get to us by late afternoon." Death leaned back, standing onto his feet, dusting the extra sand off his pants and jacket. "And don't worry about me, unlike Lloyd, I know how to get around quietly. You've got to trust me on this, well, even though you've only known me for about a few days but still. Who knows what will happen to me if he gets killed, which he just might do if he's stupid enough." Genis could only snicker at the comment, making the situation a little lighter. Death handed over the map he had used to get around; there was a dark X mark on the paper. "That's where they'll be at; you better hurry before they leave."

"Right!"

Death watched as the mage got onto Noishe, using him as a ride, and he smiled nonchalantly, his fingers pondering over the trigger of his guns. It was going to be a loooong day.

* * *

He stared over the entry point from atop of one of the mountains that was settled next to the base. There were two people there, standing guard, and he at last decided to sneak down the side. He glanced over the metal side and slowly pulled out his swords before dashing into the middle of them right behind. He made two swift movements, slashing them across the back, cutting their spines in half and ended their lives without a sound. The bodies fell to the land, one twitching before stopping. Glancing over his work, he jogged to the control pad and randomly pressed a few buttons until it opened, letting out a large 'whoosh'. He stood to the side and peaked into the room, gazing over the area to see if there were any soldiers inside.

None, it was empty and he strolled right in with no trouble at all, his ruby pools glimpsing around the metal space. It was cooler in here than outside especially when the doors closed shut and the air cons switched on. The machines hummed gently to his ears and it felt nice and comforting but now wasn't the time to remain in his thoughts, he had better things to do. He sheathed his swords, going for the guns instead, his fingers tapping the triggers gently. Creeping around the place, he hid behind one of the four poles when a familiar 'whoosh' came from in front. A group of people came running in, all panicking about something. It was like they were looking for someone.

"Hey, have any of you found the guy in red yet?" One yelled, cursing when he glanced over the room.

"No, he's still missing!"

"Damn, the boss is going to be so pissed after this."

'Guy in red? That must be Lloyd. He must have escaped.' Death thought, kneeling down, positioning Thanatos and Bion at the head's. His accurate eyes aimed carefully before letting loose, taking care of the first two before pulling the triggers again, hitting the necks, coloring the wall bright red. The blood dripped down the metal walls and the last person, who had tripped back in shock, landed on the steel floor. A grunt came from the half-elf and stared up to find a barrel in-between his eyes. The Desian stuttered, backing up, hoping that maybe he would get spared but it was all over when a bullet pierced through his skull and crumpled lifelessly to the ground. Death snorted, not even flinching at the squishy sound the bodies made and continued on into the next room. The illumination here was green and there were two other doors besides the one he had just came through. There were glowing lightning poles on the far left, surrounded by water or something and in the middle was what looked like a machine (or gamecube). The door on the right unexpectedly opened and a group of six rushed out, spotting him in the middle of everything. There was a look of confusion on their visage before going on guard, seeing as they had another intruder in the amidst. One of them tried to run away to tell the others but Death stopped him before that.

"Not so fast." He shot the man through the neck, watching the faces of alarm emerge on the soldier's. Shutting his eyes and taking a deep breath, he started another chant, casting the same spell as the one in the early morning. "O twisted door of distortion, open wide! Negative Gate!"

The attack appeared in the middle of the remaining group, catching only three of them. The blades sliced through the bodies and Death darted forward, doing a spin in mid-air and kicked one of the two men away so he could take the other with ease. He pointed Bion at the one closest to him and fired repeatedly, watching the body jerk at each hole that was created. Blood oozed through the gaps and Death didn't stop yet, continuing the pound the body like some kind of meat bag. It splattered on the walls behind, dripping down like water on a slanted surface. When there was a 'click', he stopped, letting the corpse fall to its resting place. "And then there was one."

The remaining person tried to head out the northern door but Death was faster, reaching it far before the man could and pointed Thanatos at the face. "Now say your prayer." The trigger was pulled and Death wasn't surprised when he saw parts of the brain flying, all mushy and what not. Swinging the guns around on his fingers, he paced them back into their holds and continued on through the northern door as if he had just completed a mission or something and looked quite smug about it. At least, he wasn't going to have to clean up this mess, leave that to these people.

Death calmly strolled through the building and glanced to the side where he thought he had seen a well-known scarlet colored garment going in. There were a few Desians surrounding it who had been chasing the red-clad person before stopping outside, wondering if they should follow or not. He pondered over something for a moment before heading that way, drawing his swords silently and sliced their necks apart without even thinking. The black-clocked man kicked the bodies to the far corner, hiding them from the remaining people in the building. He didn't want to draw everyone's attention as if the corpses in the other room wasn't enough. Of course, covering up the blood that lingered on the steel wasn't easy and he shrugged his shoulders at it, not bothering at all. He placed the blades away, folding his arms. For some odd reason and for the first time in his life, he felt like he needed to smoke, even though he never has. Death rubbed in-between his eyes, he really felt like having one right now and that was _really_ odd for him.

His ruby pools turned themselves to the door where Lloyd (he presumed) had entered and sauntered to it, in no hurry at all. The entry opened, revealing the scene. Death froze, staring at the enemy at hand. His eyes widened, recognizing the person immediately, it wasn't as if he couldn't. 'Yuan…?'

"An exsphere! You're…Lloyd!" The blue-haired man gasped out, strolling closer to view the teen. Death walked in silently, unnoticed by anyone inside.

Lloyd narrowed his eyes and shrugged his shoulders. "And if I am?"

"Hmm, I see the resemblance." Yuan glanced over the twin swordsmen, eyeing him carefully.

"Well, you should." Death gloated, chucking softly, catching all two of their attentions. He waved lightly and noted the blue eyes widening in shock while Lloyd's face glowed with relief. Ambling over to the red-clad teen, he yanked out one of his guns, instantly targeting Yuan. Now that he got a better look at the person, he felt memories of the old days rising up into his mind. Times when Yuan had been working for the Renegades and against Cruxis as well as something else but it was a different version of him (like Lloyd and himself). Death keep a straight face as they flashed into his head, it _has_ been a long time. But there were some that were too fuzzy and others that would never connected to this world like the other one. 'Could I…really have forgotten about everything about this place? No, I should think about this later, I have more important things to worry about right now.'

The leader of the Renegades took a few steps back, glancing between the two. "I-Impossible, there's two of you?" He looked like a deer caught in head-lights, not that he blamed him.

"Yeah, there are." Death commented easily, his body in front of the leader. For some odd reason, he felt comfortable in this danger zone, letting more parts of his real self slip through but not that single piece that will forever stay covered. One of his attitudes that he placed into the open was that he had a sarcastic streak, a bad one.

"Which one is the real one?" Yuan muttered, narrowing his eyes. Death sighed and pointed to Lloyd with ease, not really concerned right now.

"He is. I'm just a traveler from another world. Interesting, right?" He raised his gun, shooting at the leader, who instantly dodged to the side. Yuan pulled out his Swallow right in time to block the next bullet, letting it reflect off the metal surface. It hit the steel wall behind, producing a dent. Death grinned, taking the challenge that was presenting itself, a little fight could be fun. Forgetting about Lloyd for the moment, he rushed forward, using his guns as blockers for the Swallow when it came crashing down and jumping to the side to evade the lighting bolts that rained close to him.

"Not bad, Yuan." Death smirked, jumping head-first towards the ground, his hands touching it the earliest and made a flip, kicking Yuan right in the stomach. The cobalt let out a grunt, hitting the wall painfully and almost lowered his guard before rolling to the side to miss another bullet. Lloyd could only stand at the back, watching in awe at the battle.

"You know martial arts?!"

"Yeah! What about it?" Death glanced from the corner of his eye to the red-clad teen.

"That's so cool!"

Yuan narrowed his eyes, realization dawning on his mind, interrupting the little discussion that was going on. "Wait, how do you know my name?"

"Because I meant one in my world. Oh and by the way, you can call me Death. It'll make things easier." About to block another strike, he tossed his guns up into the air, grabbing a hold of the large weapon and lifted himself up. His feet collided with Yuan's chin, knocking the head back. He then proceeded to landed on the floor gracefully, catching his twin weapons and observed as the Swallow fell to the ground with a loud clatter.

The cobalt stumbled to the wall, using it as support to hold himself up. He wiped his bottom lip that was bleeding, cleaning it. "Damn, you're one tricky person."

"Thanks, I get that a lot." Death smirked.

Everyone's attention got divided next when red lights started flashing in the room. They peeked up, curious at what was happening and then the sliding doors opened, revealing a buffed brown-haired half-elf, he had spiky hair and a beard with two other soldiers following in. The person didn't take notice of the situation and began talking to the leader.

"Sir! We're received reports that the chosen's group has infiltrated the facility as well as someone else sneaking around killing our men!" The brown-haired half-elf stated, rushing further into the room, forcing Lloyd to reverse to Death's location.

The red-clad teen's eyes widened, recognizing the man. "You…you're the Desian that attacked Iselia!"

It was at that moment that the group turned to the two, who were just standing off to the side. There was a brief expression of confusion before Death just pointed to the other, saying that's-the-real-Lloyd, trying to move things along. The buffed man understood. "So you're Lloyd…but who is that? Either way, this _is_ amusing!"

The look-alike just had to make an input, feeling unimportant. "Oh, right about that person that was killing your men. That would be me."

The larger man's eyes widened. "That was you?!"

Yuan glanced around, taking his Swallow and finally interrupted. "Botta! I'm leaving for now. I'll explain everything that has happened later. Our plans will be ruined if he sees me here."

That said person, Botta, answered, taking his attention off of Death. "What of the Chosen?"

"I'll leave that to you."

"Oh, no you don't. You're not getting away just yet." Death dashed forward, ignoring Botta, who tried to intercept. Yuan didn't have any time to elude since he was still receded into the wall before the gun was right at his face. It was targeting his head, prepared to blow it clean off. Time seemed to halt at that moment, no one stirred and Botta didn't want to risk anything. Death held it there, mentally cursing himself when he tried to pull the trigger.

He couldn't do it.

The blue eyes stared at the barrel in fear, closing them as he thought that everything was going to end. But it never came and they opened up slowly, peering intriguingly at the look-alike. Lloyd blinked curiously, wondering why Death didn't finish it. It was going on everyone's mind and finally, a deep sigh creped from the black-clad man's lips, the gun lowering.

At that moment, Yuan took that chance to run out the room, exiting out of the second door. He paused in-between it for a second, glancing back at Death before leaving completely. Just as that one closed, the other opened. The entire Chosen group (minus Raine) entered, their eyes resting on the two Lloyd's in the center. Colette's mouth was open wide, not sure at what to say, Genis appeared normal since he was prepared already. And Kratos looked the most shocked, his face wide with disbelief. Death memorized it. Botta and his men stood in front of the door Yuan had exited out of, glaring at all the people. The black-clothed man stared at Kratos before gazing away, not willing to look at the man.

Memories of long ago entered his mind. The name Kratos had just snapped to him. Yeah, he knew about the person but he didn't want to remember. He wished he didn't have to…

Genis was the first one to speak. "Lloyd! Death! Are you both okay?"

Death nodded his head, taking another deep sigh.

Colette was the next one to recover. She had heard about there being two Lloyds but she hadn't believed it until seeing the _real_ thing. The older version looked so mature and different, so much than the younger. "Lloyd!" The chosen turned to the older one. "And you must be Death, correct?" The man shaked his head though the worry on the girl's face was strong. It was obvious that she cared deeply for the twin swordsmen. "Are you all right? Are you hurt?"

Kratos recovered next, having more imperative things to think about. He could always save it for later, primarily, they had to get out of here. "He looks fine, they both do."

Lloyd smiled, gazing to them happily. "You guys all came for me?"

Death pinched his nose in frustration, whacking his younger version across the head. "Of course, they did! They wouldn't be here for any other reason, you dumbass!"

Lloyd sent a look, pouting out his bottom lip.

Everyone had forgotten about their present enemy, who wasn't exactly happy about being ignored. He cleared his throat, getting their attention. "This is perfect timing, now I can take care of all of you at once!"

Death snitched, smirking. "Good luck with that." Botta twisted to him after pulling out this large red sword; it looked kinda weird and had some kind of sparkles dancing on it. "If I was able to fight the guy that was in here previously equally and almost kill him, do you honestly believe that you'll be able to defeat me too? Much less with everyone else here?"

"Shut up! I don't care about that!" Botta charged at Death with determination in his eyes. The other two Desians decided to keep the others at bay, attacking Colette and Kratos. Lloyd dashed over to protect Genis, giving him some room to cast.

Death huffed, stepping back to miss a slash. Another one came and then another, each one missing, he was just too fast for the half-elf to keep up with. He had a cocky grin on his face and at last took that moment to kick Botta at the stomach, sending him back a few paces. "You're pretty slow."

A wind blade came from one side, casted by Genis. The group of four were trying to defeat the two henchmen, Kratos and Colette ganging up on one while Lloyd and Genis on the other. He saw no troubles in this so he decided to keep his attention on the present task. Botta started casting a spell and finished it before Death was able to stop it.

"Stalagmite!" He jumped away just in time as sharp boulders started shooting out of the ground towards the sides and then one came in the middle, larger than the others. Death landed on the desk, his scarf all messed up from the flips and turns and gazed half-heartedly at the enemy.

"Oops, you missed." He couldn't help but taunt the man, finding it amusing. He shot at the larger being but it was just blocked.

"Why you little…!" Botta went back on the offensive, slashing wildly, trying to land a mark on the mocking look-alike. None connected and he let out a growl of frustration, stabbing the sword to the ground. "Rock Breaker!"

Death rolled to the side, dodging it. "_Way_ too slow."

"Maybe you're just too _fast_." Botta snorted back, trying again.

"That could be it." He smiled calmly, not worried about anything. Death bended down as the blade rushed over his head and popped out from the side, grabbing a hold of it. Thanatos was pointed at the man and fired but at the last moment, it grazed over the arm. The clothes were torn at shot and a little bit of blood dripped out. Death shrugged his shoulders, jumping back. "Oh, I missed."

Botta twitched. "You don't seem very concerned about it. I thought you were more of a serious type."

"I am…sometimes. It's more like if I'm uncomfortable with someone and don't want to speak. This is my _real_ self." Death made his arms go wide. "And its more like Lloyd acting like an idiot most of the time, I didn't really have to chance to say anything."

"Hey!" Lloyd shouted over the fighting, finishing off the Renegade he was currently fighting. Kratos finished his, slashing him across the chest, ending the man's life. All four of them turned their attention to the fighting two. "That's not true!"

At once, Death and Genis spoke together. "Yes, it is."

A defeated groan came from the teen.

"Oh that's right, I was supposed to tell you this." The look-alike grinned mischievously. Everyone saw it except for Lloyd. "_I told you so_."

The red-clad teen groaned again, louder this time.

During that time, Kratos ran forward, wanting to rid of their problems at once and slashed at Botta, who blocked immediately. He made another one, getting around the guard and knocked the sword away. Botta, finding himself out-matched, ran away through the same door Yuan had used but not before commenting at Kratos _and_ Death. "Damn, I underestimated the _both_ of you."

Raine suddenly walks in and let out a gasp, gaining everyone's awareness. "So there really _are_ two Lloyds." She almost groaned, knowing that might be more trouble ahead, a.k.a. studies yet at the same time, there was a glitter in her eyes. Death flinched and took a step back.

Everyone turned their attention back to Death except for Lloyd and Genis. "Hey, did Genis tell you everything?"

"Yeah." Colette broke in. "But none of us really believed him. Even I thought it was a little…weird."

Death twisted to the mage. "And now you see why I asked you to go instead of me."

"Point taken."

The professor glanced around the room and noticed the strange weapon on the ground, whispering something to herself. She picked it up, examining it carefully. "Isn't this a…"

Kratos grunted, his arms folded across his chest. "Lets save the chitchat later. We shouldn't stay here long."

Raine nodded, still a little curious over Death and the weapon in her hand. "You're right. I opened the escape route just now. Let's go."

The group of six hurried out the room, not bothering with any pointless fighting unless needed. Death shot at them from a far, keeping the half-elves at bay and stayed at the back. It didn't take long before they were outside, still running across the desert until they were at a safe distance from the base. By the time they stopped was when they saw Noishe running towards them, tail wagging at recognizing his master. A loud howl came from the large green and white beast and stopped in front, right before jumping onto Lloyd to give him a big sloppy lick.

"Noishe! You came too!" The red-clad teen cheered, hugging the creature affectionately, rubbing the ears.

Raine decided it safe enough to ask now. "I have a question. This crystalline object attached to this weapon…" She held the item out. "Is this one of the exspheres that Genis spoke of?"

Kratos grunted, gazing over the red sword. "It would seem so."

Lloyd grinned, pointing to the one on mercenary's hand. "Oh yeah, you use an exsphere too."

"…So you noticed.

"Well, duh."

Rain interrupted them. "What are they exactly?"

Kratos shaked his head, holding up a hand to quiet down everyone. "It will take a while to explain…and about Death. We can talk about it when we reach Triet."

Death nodded, agreeing. He somehow had shifted back into a reserved person, not willing to talk more than needed. "I agree, it'll be much safer inside the town then out here."

They started marching again, jogging slowly across the hot sand. Death examined over the three newcomers, observing them carefully. Colette was obviously a kind girl and a klutz from what he heard. His eyes rested on Raine, who didn't seem like a bad person and was quite caring, like a mother or big sister would. He smiled at the thought before glancing towards Kratos. The ruby pools darkened and he grinded his teeth together in frustration. He didn't want to reminisce, didn't want to know anything about his past. They weren't exactly happy times either, none of them were. Death knew full well by one glance that that person was Lloyd's father and his own on his planets and he cursed his luck for meeting such a being. It appeared the older man didn't want to reveal the truth; neither did he and decided to keep quiet about the information. Though at least this one still had his soul…

* * *

After reaching Triet, they went to the inn after tracking through the sand all day. There Death tried to explain about everything he had told to the two except for some stuff from the morning. He had presumed that the others hadn't said anything about it and was quite glad for it. Questions were often thrown at him and he answered them to the best of his ability, mostly about how he got here and what not, though there were still some he didn't want to say like his past. He kept a far distance from Raine as the gilt in the eyes came back, he refused to get anywhere near her. After everything was worked out, Raine started asking for a better explanation about Exspheres and wanting to wear one. All Death managed to get out of it was that Exspheres were able to 'awaken dormant capabilities' as the Kratos had stated simply and that they were poisonous without a Key Crest. A Key Crest had to be made out of inhibitor ore then was engraved by something, an art known only to dwarves, which he had learned that Lloyd's foster father was. The twin swordsmen interrupted that he could do the crest but his dad would have the ore and it didn't take long before Raine poured out all her stuff searching for one. Kratos was the one that found it and Lloyd said he could fix it. Everything was fine and dandy and Death wanted nothing more then to get some rest, silently wishing for everything to go faster.

Death stared at the ceiling wall, his scarf off with his jacket tucked up higher to hide the scar on his neck. His ruby eyes examined over Lloyd, who was working diligently on the Key Crest while Kratos was sitting on the other bed reading a book. He sighed, squirming around on the bed, it wasn't the best but it would do. Funny to say, it was the same room Lloyd, Genis, and himself had rented yesterday, it was odd that he would come back.

"Ah! I finished it!" Lloyd cried out, jumping out of his seat, letting it shuffle across the ground. He ran out of the room immediately, waving to the other two occupants and left, shutting the door. A couple of minutes later, Kratos placed down his book and glanced over to Death.

"Death…correct?" The mercenary spoke calmly, his red eyes staring at the other calculatingly.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Are you like Lloyd? I mean like his past?"

Death snapped his eyes open, sitting up and shifted his large bangs over half of his face. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Yes and no, why?"

Kratos seemed to stay still then gazed away, not wanting to answer honestly. "It's nothing, just wondering."

A silence came over the two before the younger broke it, muttering something under his breath. "At least you're not like the other one."

It was faint but Kratos managed to catch it. "What was that?"

He smiled, tilting his head to the side, trying to foreign innocence. "Said what?"

Kratos stared coldly, trying but failing to pick the older version of his son apart. He was certain about what he heard, after that it clicked. He remembered that Death was from another world so that could mean that there might be a version of himself there too. That also meant that he knew about him being Lloyd's father but that phase still had another meaning, it was almost out in relief. Deciding that some fresh air would help him think better, he stood up and headed towards the door. "I'm going out for a while."

Death gazed at the retreating form then leaned back, knowing already where Kratos was going to head to. He was going outside to see Noishe and soon after Lloyd would follow him. It was obvious what would happen next. He didn't want to get too involved and snuggled into the sheets. And then the lights in the room went off.

* * *

The next time he woke up, he was picking up some shuffling sounds outside and when he tried to rehear it, it stopped. He quietly sat up, wondering if anyone else was awake but as he glanced around the room, he noticed that Lloyd was snoring happily, fast asleep, and Kratos was still in bed, sword close by. Death rubbed his eyes, trying to listen for the noise again and he did, this time lighter. His ruby pools snapped to the window, watching it carefully, silently putting on his clothes and weapons. He neared the pane, the trundling coming closer and pointed Thanatos at the window, silently wondering if someone was going to try breaking in. The moonlight from outside gave a great casting, letting the light come in and reflect on the stone walls.

A figure abruptly zipped past the gap, its body blocking out the light for a moment and Death was tempted to shoot at it but hesitated, glancing back at the sleeping occupants. Quickly, he jumped out, perceiving the person dash away into the alleys. He followed, his black scarf flapping behind him, rushing to catch up, Thanatos in his right hand ready to fire at any given moment. The figure ran into the darkness, the look-alike right behind, unafraid of the abyss and instead welcomed it. His eyes scanned for any unusual movements and watched as a cape fluttered into the moonlight, giving away the person's location. Death took no hesitation in firing at the person, who jumped behind the corner to dodge. He cursed his luck and rounded the place, ducking down when something sharp slid above his head.

"You're pretty good, I'll give you that." The man commented, swinging his weapon around in both hands. He stepped into the light, revealing the long blue hair and eyes. Yuan held the Swallow still, eyeing his opponent, flipping his ponytail back behind his shoulder.

"Pretty Good? I think I deserve more than that." Death snickered, aiming Thanatos at the head. The light casted a shadow over his eyes, giving him a sinister appearance and he clicked the gun teasingly.

Yuan smirked, untying the handles and tossed his cape aside, seeing as it was getting in the way of this fight. If he was going to clash with someone fast he would need to lighten his load to keep up. "Are you sure you want to fight _me_?"

"What about you?" The look-alike tilted his head. "Do you think you could beat me?"

"We'll just have to see!" The cobalt struck first, spinning his Swallow to attack the brown-haired man. Death dodged to the side, placing Thanatos to fire at the shoulder but Yuan managed to raise the blade up in time to block. He rushed forward, jumping over the weapon when it made another assault, and made a twirl in aerial, letting his leg hang out to gain some momentum and kicked the other in the face. The older man skidded across the ground before getting back up again. "Thunder Blade!"

Death wiggled his nose, rolling to the side and fired some more rounds at the cobalt. Yuan grunted, having a hard time keeping up with the little speed demon, going on defense. It was the first time in a long while that he had to and that wasn't a good sign in his case. He was quickly loosing ground. Death smirked, taking the moment to fold his arms. "Aren't we having fun?"

"I underestimated you." Yuan huffed, taking a few steps back to gain some distance. "I would have never guessed that you would be _this_ powerful."

"Well, thanks for the praise." Death ran forward again, using his guns to block the blade that was supposed to come down and split his head. "But you know, I'm not really fighting at my fullest. If you're having so much trouble with me right now, imagine it when I go all out."

"Is that so?" Yuan tried to push more strength down but the other was just vigorous enough to hold it up. They were at a stalemate but Death was grinning as if he had other plans. Suddenly, he shoved the weapon upward, making Yuan loose his footing, head slamming against the hard wall behind. He closed his eyes at the pain, felt a hand grab both of his own and when he finally opened them with the black spots, he saw the barrel of the gun right at his forehead. That was the second time today.

"I suggest you give up right now and drop your weapon."

"And if I don't?" Yuan tested, still trying to clear the dancing spots. The gun got nearer and Death flicked the trigger as if warning. Slowly, the cobalt released the blade, letting it clatter to the sandy earth. A low growl came from him, glaring coldly at the younger man. Death hauled back, picking up the blade and carefully placed it to the opposite side, far enough that Yuan wouldn't be able to get it without getting shot. The blue-haired half-elf stepped forward, folding his arms across his chest and leaned over to get his cape, tying it around his shoulder. He studied the other, wanting to figure out what was going on inside his head. "Once more, you didn't finish me. May I ask why?"

Death just smiled, putting his guns away, sitting onto of a crate that was beside him. "That's for me to know and you to find out." He leaned back, head against the wall. "So what are you doing out here, Yuan?"

"That's none of your business and I'd like you to tell me how you know my name." He growled, he had never felt so defenseless and in the dark before.

"Like I said before that's for me to know and you to find out."

Yuan leered, grinding his teeth in frustration. "I demand you tell me this instant!"

Death just shaked his head, calm and collected unlike someone else. "Here, I'll tell you something else. If I'm right, you tried to sneak into the room while everyone else was asleep to kill Kratos. In the end, you messed up and ran, not wanting Kratos to know that you're trying to do cause if he finds out, he'll get real suspicious about what you are doing, correct?"

Yuan's blue eyes widened. "W-What?! How do you know that?!"

"Can't say yet, maybe in the future. But don't worry, I won't tell."

The other didn't answer, narrowing his eyes hazardously at the younger man. Death glanced up at the sky and decided it was time to head back. Kratos would get suspicious if he stayed out for too long and having Yuan now after him wasn't all that great either, oh well more fun for him.

He stood back up and started strolling away but not before getting stopped by Yuan. "Hey! Wait! What the hell do you think you're doing? You can't leave me off like that! Tell me what you know!"

Death just chuckled, waving his hand, the other in the pocket. "Maybe at a better time, see you later, Yuan." He dashed off before the other could yell out something more, heading back to the inn. His feet quietly pitter-pattered across the soil and ended up in front of the inn. He would have snuck back into the room through the window but maybe the front door was safer, not wanting to surprise anyone (coughKratoscough). Death made it easily into the shared room, glancing around, finding everyone still asleep and undressed some of his clothes to get more comfortable before flopping back into bed, waiting for sleep to take him.

Tomorrow, they were going to head to the Ruins of Triet.

* * *

Wow, damn this is long. I think I'll continue it for a while longer or until get bored or run out of ideas. Anyway, as you have been told, Death is a dark spell caster and one more but I won't tell, of course, unless you have read my 'Black Terror' then you would know but don't worry it'll be revealed sooner or later. If you have any questions or if I missed something, just tell me though there are some I can't answer until later.

Anyway, the first spell he used, Negative Gate, is a simple one for him, the lowest but with his strengths he can make the magic more powerful and deadly. I used that one from Tales of the Abyss.

Also, when there are spells that are not in the game, I'll put them down here as we go along. A note, not all of his have to be chanted.


	4. Kratos vs Death and the Ruins of Triet

**Title: Interference **

**Author**: Metamorcy

**Rating**: M

**Disclaimer**: Do I have to keep repeating it? Is there any point now?

**Summary**: Weakened and sealed, a different yet older version of Lloyd is forced to travel with the chosen's group in order to regain his powers but he's keeping more things to himself then he's saying, a lot more.

**N/A**: I made some changes to the dungeon to fit the story.

The only pairings in this fanfic are the ones below and the ones that are shown in the game though I'm not sure how to do Sheena's crush on Lloyd since there are now two of them so I'll have to think about it later. There will be a lot of friendship ones even to the people you'd never expect :D

Presea/Genis (one-sided and just a crush)

Kratos/Anna

Yuan/Martal

**

* * *

**

Chapter 4: Kratos vs. Death and the Ruins of Triet

"So I presume that these are the ruins we need to head into?" Death stated, the group coming up to a destroyed temple. Pillars were scattered along the area, sand covering up most of them. Some walls remained standing though most appeared cracked and withered by the wind. It was surrounded by a mountain range, the rocks high up into the sky with the sea on the other side. He could smell the very faint scent of salt but it was mostly covered by the sand and stench of burning materials. The black-clothed man glanced behind and saw their footsteps being slowly enveloped before turning back. The heat with the sun bearing down at them was starting to get intolerable, only Kratos didn't show any signs.

"They look like it." Genis kicked some dirt, slugging across the large dunes. He reached out, touching one of the pillars and instantly retracted back. He shaked his hand, blowing into it, having contact the scorching part of it, and shifted around so the packs would contact it, leaning over against it to rest. Noishe whined from the load, having forced to carry the heavies of the luggage while everyone else held smaller packs so it wouldn't get in the way. Colette and Raine were in the back, trudging along, remaining close together. They had left for the seal in the morning, or mid-morning since Lloyd had woken up late. That hadn't exactly been the best thing.

Noishe suddenly stopped; everyone else doing the same, all hot and sweaty but most of them could still continue on. Lloyd didn't bother commenting on his pet, bending over, fanning himself. "Ah, so hot…Man, I'm beat."

Genis sighed, already knowing that this would happen. "See? You're already worn out."

The red-clad teen ignored him, continuing on his complaining. "Man, I'm sick of this desert."

Kratos sighed to himself, a little embarrassed by the way the twin swordsmen was acting. Noishe let out a noise, backing up as if panicking. He almost knocked into Lloyd, who straightened himself, blinking his eyes at the beast. Death walked over, fingering the green and white hair, trying to calm the animal. Raine and Colette got closer to the group while Genis glanced over.

"What's wrong, Noishe?" Lloyd asked curiously.

Kratos was the first to reply, reaching for his sword, Death followed suit, his hands heading back to his guns. "Be on your guard, there are enemies around."

It was at that moment that two creatures came busting out of the sand, sending the specks flying around the area. They were covered in hard smooth stones, shaping around the entire body. One of them came apart, revealing the fiery insides as it started casting a spell, fire obviously. Genis stepped back, chanting a water or ice, the monsters' weaknesses while Colette tossed her chakrams at the casting one, trying to interrupt it. Kratos and Lloyd separated to fight one of the two and Death remained at the back, firing upon both, watching for any openings in the shells. Raine rushed back, holding her staff, watching over the battlefield to see if there was anyone that needed to be healed.

One of the Fire Elements released an Eruption spell, covering a part of the field in hot magma. Soon after it shot up, a little of it hit Lloyd at the arm, dropping his left sword to put out the fire. Raine instantly ran over to nurse the burn. Colette managed to scamper away before it smacked her, moving to the side. Kratos, who was too far to get hurt, cut the Fire Element in half, proceeding to finish off the last one but Death got to it before he did, his bullets hitting the core. The light inside the armor died out, collapsing into the sand.

Kratos glanced over the recollecting group and sighed heavily, getting everyone's attention even Lloyd's. Raine had just finished the healing, everything done, and gazed to the mercenary. "This is going to be a nuisance."

Lloyd tilted his head to the side. "What is?"

When he noticed that every person was staring, he folded his arms, not bothering in answering the question. The red head had a serious expression, Death thought it looked like a face of a teacher just like Raine's but he'd rather not comment on it out loud. "Ah, nothing. Anyway, it would be a good idea for you to learn techniques to protect yourself."

Colette perked up at this, stepping forward, holding her hands together at her chest. "Are you talking about self-defense training?"

Death leaned back against a pillar, folding his arms, closing his eyes, waiting and listening. Kratos glanced at him for a moment before gazing to the chosen. "Something like that. Techniques to raise your defense during battle, I'll show you how it's done. Once you grasp the theory, the rest should be easy."

This went off to Kratos teaching them, summoning a green barrier around him. He explained it to the group, testing each one until they got it right. Death remained still, feeling the strong sun rays on his face and the warm gusts of wind on his side. He was never one for the hot temperature; he liked it better in the cold where he could see the snow drifting, everything peace and quiet. The way the fields and houses would be buried underneath a layer of white, it was memorizing. He smiled lightly when he heard some complaining from Lloyd's direction and opened his ruby pools, observing with amusement. The red-clad teen was the only one having the most difficulty in learning. Genis and Raine had already figured it out and Colette was able to summon one but she was still having some trouble in keeping it there for long periods. Kratos sighed, shaking his head, letting the twin swordsmen try a few more times before turning to him. Death waved lightly in response.

"What about you?" The red head questioned, waiting to see the green field.

The black-clocked man picked himself up and strolled closer. "I already have one, it's just a little different than the one you're showing but it works the same way except for a few twists."

"I see." Kratos nodded his head, leaving the look-alike alone and went back to Lloyd, who was _starting_ to make it appear. He glanced around the area, noticing the disappearance of someone. "Noishe's gone."

Lloyd paused for a moment, taking a breather. "You're right. Ah man, he's run off again."

The mercenary twisted back to the teen. "He's probably nervous about the monsters. I think it would be best not to count on Noishe in places with monsters around."

"At least, we don't have to worry about our stuff getting in the way or getting ruined in the fights." Death stated before going back to daydreaming, slumping down on the ground and leaning back in the shade. Raine, Genis and Colette, who had just completed the technique, sat down together in a little group, studying on the area from the books the older woman had brought along.

"Death." Raine called out, drawing his attention. "You said you don't know anything about this world, correct?"

"That's right."

There was a gleam in her eyes that somewhat scared him. It appeared to be the same one from last night when he had told everyone about himself and right now, he was willing to run away from her. Raine just smiled like nothing was wrong, Colette encouraging her and Genis shot him a pity look. "Then why don't _I_ teach you? I _am_ a teacher at Iselia and Lloyd's too. Hopefully, you'll have more potential than him."

"I guess…" Death muttered, shifting closer to the group and listened as the female drone on. He didn't pay much attention on the conversation, staring at the surroundings and glancing occasionally to the two swordsmen, Lloyd getting better.

One hour later, everyone was standing up, ready to continue on, having finally learned the protection skill. Death was quite tempted to hit Lloyd for taking so damn long and was a little irated.

Kratos glanced around, eyeing each and every one of them. "So does everyone understand?"

"Well, I still don't get it but I already feel stronger. I can't wait to try it out in real battle." The red-clad swordsmen grinned, placing one hand on his sword, tilting to the side.

Genis sighed, shaking his head at the stupidity of his friend. He felt lured to slap himself on the forehead but prevented it. "I think you're imagining things."

They arrived at the entrance of the temple, or at least what remained of it. It was centered in the middle of four pillars as a large slab of stone with another one at the side. There were stairs leading to it and they went up, peering down at the area. Colette went to the one at the side, reading over the thing. "Say, is this the seal? It has my family's crest on it."

As everyone glanced over to her, Raine stopped in font of the block, staring at it with interest. Death's lip twitched, backing up, spotting the crazy/scary look in her eyes, he thought he could see heart shapes inside for a second.

"Fantastic!!" She screamed, shocking everyone except for the black-clocked man. They all stared hard at her, trying to figure out what was going on. "Look at this slab covering the entrance! It's clearly of a different composition then the surrounding stone! It's just as I thought!" Raine laughed to herself, kneeling down as her hands toughed the material with an obsessive gleam that scared everyone around her, even the stoic Kratos was a little uncomfortable. "This is polycarbonate developed during the Ancient War to defend against magic. Oh, feel the smooth surface! It's wondrous." She rubbed her face against it, squealing to herself. She then proceeded to Colette's spot, shoving through Kratos and Lloyd, examining the stone.

The red head stared at the woman. "Is she always like this?"

A piercing screech came from her and Lloyd couldn't answer, having never seen this side either. He turned to his best friend. "Is she?"

Genis sighed, not comfortable now that everyone was looking to him for answers. "I've been trying so hard to hide it too."

Death snorted. "Not hard enough." He tilted his head to the side and muttered. "Well, she's going to the top of 'the scariest girls' list for this planet."

Before anyone could ask him about it, Raine interrupted them, now calm. It was startling on how easy her mood changed. "Hmm? This depression…its reads 'Oracle Stone'. Colette, place your hand here. That should reveal the entrance."

"Really?" Lloyd exclaimed excitedly.

"This stone is enchanted with magic designed to identify the Chosen. There's no question about it."

The blond placed her hand on the stone and the slab moved instantly, revealing the entry. There was some stairs heading underground where it was dark and a compacted smell flooded out but no one seemed to care about that. "It opened! Wow! I guess I'm really the Chosen after all."

"Yes. I think we all know that already." Genis stated, glancing into the area but he couldn't see anything except for where the light went into.

Lloyd looked like was about to jump up and down. "Okay! Now, it's getting exciting! Let's hurry up and go inside!"

Both Kratos and Death sighed, knowing where this was going to lead. The red head was the first to answer, pushing through the group, leading them into the dark cave. "I hope you'll be able to maintain that enthusiasm." Lloyd followed in next with Colette beside him, the Sage siblings soon after and with Death last, wanting to keep their backs safe. The place was covered in thick stones and the heat was more unbearable down here. To the side was some glowing red, coming from cut-out lines. It lighted the place considerately but it wasn't enough. As they went farther, there were torches already burning, helping in the lighting. Everyone remained cautious, traveling down the first hallway, tightening their grips on their weapons. Sounds of monsters prowling around reached their ears and soon came up to a three-way path. In front was a door where the heat was stronger with lots of luminosity coming in while the other two was the same as the one they had just traveled though.

Kratos glanced down all three ways, Death stepping forward to his side. The mercenary, who was in charge of the group, lead them down to the right, everyone following without a word. On one side, there were piles of rocks compacted together while on the other was a wall. It was warm to the touch, covered in moss. Death's gloved hand slid over it and brought it to his face, rubbing the stuff in-between his fingers, staring at it. It was wet and silky, perhaps to protect itself from the fire the monsters in the area used. Moving on, he followed the group with ease, watching them go through a doorway, entering into a large section. They were on a pathway that extended everywhere, some high above while others seemed to be from another doorway. Beside them was molten lava, the liquid bubbling and the scent of ashes filled their nostrils. It was hard to breath and the place appeared to rumble in the clear steam. They wandered the platform they were on, staying away from the edges, careful not to fall in. The group came across a few monsters, some Fire Elements, Fire Birds and a Fire Warrior and dealt with them swiftly. No major injuries were made and persisted on. After figuring out that they had to light the torches with the Sorcerer's Ring to raise a platform, they did each one they spotted, searching for a way to get to the altar.

Death trailed as the group headed back into the entrance area, hoping to get to the next field area. He watched their backs, still hearing some growls and footsteps here and there, his fingers tapping the triggers gently. He could tell that the heat was getting to some of the people here especially for those that were wearing heavy materials. Sweat was lining their checks and forehead, some fanning and gulping down water to keep themselves cool. Death reached up, loosening his scarf to let some air into his neck.

The group came across a large box stuck into the wall, covered in rocks, something they hadn't seen before. It had strange writings on it and was well craved. Lloyd used the Sorcerer's ring to blast the rubble off, freeing it from its prison. They headed closer to it, curious as to what was inside. Raine kneeled down, her hands brushing away the dirt and pebbles to read the inscription, Genis as well. Colette tried to help when the Sages couldn't figure it out but even she couldn't understand a thing. Death narrowed his eyes, sensing something weird coming from it and his mind snapped when he figured it out.

"Wait! Don't open that box!"

It was too late; the Chosen had already done so. A low growl came from the chest and inside rounding the outer edges were large white teeth with a pink tongue sticking out. Two eyes appeared on top, peering at the people that had awakened it from its slumber. The monster started clattering the mouth, trying to bit the ones that were too close.

Kratos rushed forward, drawing his sword to prevent any hands from missing. "Get away from it!"

Genis and Raine were first, immediately heading to the back to start casting magic and support. Kratos and Lloyd remained in front, hacking away at the annoying thing that sprouted out bones and skulls from its bottomless pit of a stomach. The items knocked into the two swordsmen, and the creature snarled out, almost as if laughing. Colette remained in-between with Death, using long-range attacks. It didn't take long to realize that their physical attacks weren't doing anything.

"Shit, the armor is too strong to cut through." Lloyd cursed, getting a glare from Raine and a secret one from Kratos (Death saw it). "None of our attacks are working."

"I agree, I can't even dent the outside." Kratos guarded when a few bones were tossed his way, using his shield to take the blow. "It appears to be one of those Fakes, a creature that fools travelers into thinking it's a treasure chest."

Death stopped firing when a 'Proton' and 'Fireball' hit the monster. It yelped, pausing for a moment, backing up. His eyes blinked, noticing the burns and cuts. "It's weak against magic!"

Upon that announcement, Kratos stepped back, chanting while Lloyd and Colette went closer, guarding and protecting the spell casters, even Death started throwing his own.

"Proton!"

"Lightning!"

"Stone Blast!"

"Negative Gate!"

All four spell assaulted the Fake, knocking it back, landing on the surface, mouth wide-open. The armor had marks and blenches all over it, struggling to get back up. The Fake instantly turned towards Genis, bouncing to the mage, throwing stuff his way. Lloyd and Colette got into its path, blocking it, throwing some techs here and there to catch its attention. Death shot it in the eye and the Fake glared at him, making a nasty sneer. The black-clocked man huffed, jumping back a few feet to keep his distance and started casting another spell. More of them flew his way until the creature collapsed, dead and destroyed. The lid fell off, the tongue hanging out to the side. They sighed at the defeat, nearing it again, this time knowing full-well that it wasn't going to pop back to life.

Raine turned to the look-alike with interest. "Death, what's that magic you used? I've never seen it before."

"It's called Negative Gate. It's a basic dark spell type." He answered with ease, putting away one of his guns.

"But it's still simply amazing, you being able to learn magic while Lloyd can't." (He told them about that part but nothing else like teleportation only magic)

Death chuckled. "You have to have some intelligence to be able to learn magic."

Lloyd pouted from behind. "Hey, stop making fun of me!" He glared at the two, Genis snickering off to the side. The teen glared harder, trying to make a point but it wasn't working and had no effect. He rotated to his older version, his pout growing bigger. "And Death, why are you making fun of me!? Aren't I your younger self?"

Death grinned, leaning over. "True but I'm only stating the facts. Maybe you'll learn and pick up a book one day."

Lloyd didn't respond, his cheeks darkening in color and stormed down the hall and made a right turn into the second platform area. Everyone followed close behind; making sure that the red-clad teen wouldn't get into any trouble. Death could only keep the grin on before letting it disappear back into its blank state as he came upon discovering his younger self was _truly_ an _idiot_.

Lloyd was fighting two Fire Birds and a Brown Pot by _himself_. Death felt like smacking the bastard up-side the head…and maybe toss him into the molten lava too. Anyway, before anyone else could rush in to help, he was already firing at the two birds, hoping that would get their awareness…and it did. They stopped hovering over Lloyd and flew straight at him. He cursed his luck, jumping to the side and continued unloading round after round until Kratos and Colette got there. Death halted for a moment so he wouldn't hit them and aimed more carefully. Lloyd was easily taking care of the Brown Pot, blocking whenever it threw some balls at him. It didn't take long before the creature fell and the birds' fire was extinguished.

This resulted in Lloyd getting a lecture from both Raine and Kratos for going ahead like that. Death chuckled at his younger version's misery and sauntered over, patting the teen on the head, who in turn stared at him for it, before abiding on. They lighted more torches, trying to figure out which platforms were raised.

He glanced at the current area, finding it clear. There were no present signs of monsters at the moment. He glimpsed over the group from behind, Raine just a few inches in front.

"Raine…correct?" He called out, quickening his pace.

The female elf glanced over, holding her staff close to her body. "Yes, that's right."

"I was wondering if I could ask you something." Death stated, watching in front to check the area though Kratos was doing a great job in doing that. He noticed her nod, telling him to speak. "Is it alright if I call you 'Professor' as well?"

The entire group paused with shock written on their faces except for Kratos, Raine was hit the most. Genis reacted first. "Why would you want to call Sis, Professor? You should be able to call her by her real name."

"Yes, that's true but…" Death paused. "It's just that it would be a little strange that everyone else calls her that, Kratos excluded, and I don't. I only look about nineteen, no older than Lloyd, plus I am kinda going to be her new student seeing as I know nothing about this world."

Raine tilted her head, understanding instantly. "I see, yes, you're right. You are after all going to be my student so yes, go ahead and call me 'Professor'." There was a glitter in her eyes and Death was wondering if he had made the right decision. "I'll teach you all about the Asgard and their amazing ruins there that have cave writings and much _much_ more! And by the looks of it and from what I've observed, you have more potential than Lloyd does, maybe one day he can be just like you!"

"Professor…" The red-clad teen frowned, knowing that it was an insult.

Death suddenly smiled softly, his expression changing. "No, its best if Lloyd _never_ becomes me."

"Huh? Why's that?" Colette asked.

"Trust me on this, its best if he doesn't. He won't like what I have to do to live."

Everyone wanted to inquire why but it seemed no one had the courage to do so seeing as he didn't want to talk about it. They carried on, trying to find the seal room while their thoughts on Death.

* * *

Death sighed, rubbing the back of his neck; they had finally found it after running around the area for about four times. Entering through the teleportation device, he stepped forward, ignoring Raine as she went on her rant about the surrounding area.

"This place is also built with magitechnology! Absolutely fantastic!" The woman was back in her own little world again.

Death glanced around the place, examining it. There was a circular thing in front, all red and what-not, and behind that was a large stone symbol with two glowing lines on each side. The area here was dimmer then below with a dome above their heads and the air had a cooler feeling. As they all neared the altar, red sparkles that almost looked like fireflies started dancing upward from the center, more coming out at each passing second. Everyone stepped back and a heavy sensation fell upon them.

Genis yelped. "Ahh! What the?!..." The ground started to rumble and the glitters stopped coming out with a large upward explosion in the middle. Steam covered their visions for a while and a large roar screeched into their ears. Two others followed, Death gasped, jumping back to dodge a large tail from hitting him, backing against the opposite side. The place cleared, revealing three creatures, one larger than the other. It was obvious that the big one was the parent while the other two was the children. The small ones were floating in air; they looked like a large vicious version of a tiger, all red with the tails long and spiky. They growled, showing their white teeth to them. The mother (by the looks of it), a Ktugach, appeared the same as the children, which were Ktugachling, except her feet were implanted on the ground and had fire burning on her back. Spikes were on top of her head, shivering, and Death knew what they were meant for.

"Watch out for those spikes, she's going try to use them to impale us!" He called out a warning, firing at the smaller ones, trying to stop them from casting magic. Genis remained in the back, shooting off 'Aqua Edge' and 'Icicle' repeatedly. Raine watched over the group from behind, running around, tossing items at people and healing them with magic.

Lloyd ran towards one of the Ktugachling, attacking it. He did a Sonic Trust and a Sword Rain, knocking it down and kept pounding at it until it was dead. The other one released a Fire Ball spell, scorching Colette at the side, who would have gotten a full-hit if she hadn't tripped at the last moment.

Death raised an eyebrow. 'That girl's clumsiness can really be a blessing in disguise.' He fired at the mother, keeping it off of Lloyd, who was currently defending from an Eruption spell. Kratos was taking care of the last Ktugachling while Genis used his spells to weaken the temple guardian.

"Negative Gate!" The attack was a little off, striking both of the enemies at the side, unable to do much damage. Death continued to fire rounds, hoping that that would do some major amount but the skin was tough, almost like metal. When the last Ktugachling disappeared, letting out a despaired cry, the temple guardian's attitude to this whole battle shifted. It roared loudly, her paw slamming into the ground, clawing at anyone that got too close. Lloyd and Kratos were unable to get near it, running around to dodge the strikes while looking for an opening. Things got worse when she started spinning around, hitting everything within a three meter radius. Everyone backed away from the monster, holding their area. Suddenly, the spikes on the creature's head throbbed and the head leaned down, aiming at the group.

Raine gasped. "Run!"

The group scattered, running in two directions. Death and Genis went to the left while the others ran to the right. The spikes on the head shot forward, hitting the stone wall, indenting in. They remained attached to it and quickly a new pair was growing on top of the head at a remarkable speed. The Ktugach growled, jumping into the middle, whirling around before twisting to the two on the left. The creature raced forward, forcing Death and Genis to dart back, only stopping where there was no where else to go. A wall prevented them from going any further and turned to the monster, the black-clothed man jumping in front of the mage, protecting him.

"Death!"

"Genis!"

Death cursed colorfully to himself and heard more cries of panic from the other side. Genis was beside him, scared, cowering behind. Kratos, Lloyd, Raine and Colette tried to get the mother's attention away from the cornered two but were unsuccessful. The Ktugach growled, bearing its white teeth, no escape in sight. Everything else was covered in fire…except for… He turned to the mage with a serious tone. "Genis, do you trust me?"

The elf glanced up. "W-What are you talking about? Is this _really_ the time for this?!"

"No, it's just that I'm going to do something but I needed you to trust me so that you won't panic or freak out." Death edged back, closer to the wall, his back now against it. He could feel the cool dampness on it, a little of sweat crawling down the side of his face. He placed his guns away so he could have both hands free for this next stunt.

Genis hung onto the older man, holding his kendama close by. "I trust you!"

"Good! Now hold on!" The look-alike grabbed the mage by the waist, pulling him closely and jumped up, placing his feet against the wall, propelling himself forward. A yelp came from the elf as they hit the ground, sliding underneath the Ktugach. Death was on the bottom, taking most of the scratches, the stones burning against his clothes ad skin. Just as they got away, still skating, the mother rotated around, flipping her tail at their position. Death narrowed his eyes, using his legs to hit the ground, lifting himself up with his hands, so his head wouldn't hit the stone, into the handstand. He bended his right arm, the other holding Genis tightly and raised themselves above the coming tail and let it pass underneath them, Death flipping up-right. He landed on his feet and flicked back, dodging the Ktugach's paws. He could feel his scarf flapping in front of him, his ruby pools watching the monster's actions carefully. Sad to say, it didn't stop there. The temple guardian roared, the ground shaking at the force and spit fire at the two that were still in mid-air. A few screams came from beneath and Death cursed again, placing his free hand before him.

"Barrier!" He called out, the fire stopping, hitting something instead. It burned into some invisible shield and he held it up until the fire stopped, shattering it. Death let out a long sigh, hitting the floor gently and almost tumbled. He managed to place a foot back to stop himself and released the mage. Turning to him, he smiled as if nothing was wrong. "You alright?"

"Y-Yeah!" Genis nodded, taking deep breaths. "Thanks!"

"Genis! Death!" Three of the fighters called out, Kratos taking care of the Ktugach, making the finishing move to end the battle. He griped, sheathing his sword, watching as the monster faded away. Raine kneeled down to her brother's level, eyes examining him over.

"Are you two alright?" Lloyd asked, full of worry.

The look-alike nodded. "Yes, we're both fine."

"Death, you're bleeding!" Colette called out, pointing to his hand. She grabbed it, holding it out. It was a small gash, nothing big. He must have cut it during the gliding. The black-clothed man blinked, staring at it, why hadn't he hadn't noticed it before? A warm feeling washed over him and the cut disappeared, fading back into regular skin. He glanced to Raine, who had casted the spell and thanked her before checking himself for any others, not that he needed to. All of them have already healed dued to his high-speed regeneration ability. Kratos helped mend Lloyd and Colette while Raine remained with her brother, hugging him. Ah, sisterly love.

The altar unexpectedly rose up, a glow came next with a shadow of a creature appearing inside, slowly dissolving into a red ball. It then came back down, the floating thing remaining. A voice called out into the room, startling the people until they recognized it, Death still on guard but as he saw everyone else relax so did he.

"You, the chosen of regeneration. Offer your prayers at the altar."

"Yes, my lord." Colette stood up, stepping closer with everyone else and leaned over, resting her hands into her chest. "Oh Goddess Martal, great protector and nurturer of the earth, grant me thy strength!"

The little glowing ball started evaporating until nothing was left and the top of the dome started shining with a golden color. A small one came gliding down and extended out to take shape of a young looking man with wings. Death narrowed his eyes instantly, finding something _very_ wrong.

That man, from whom Death was told was Remial, spoke to the Chosen. "Colette, my dear daughter, you have done well."

The female blond gazed up but her words were a little off, only he noticed that. Everyone else was too concentrated on the angel. "Thanks you…Fa…ther."

"The guardian of the seal has fallen and the first seal had been released. Efreet will surely awaken soon. In the name of Cruxis, I shall grant you the power of the angels."

"Thanks you, my lord." Colette remained still as four lights, all different colors, shot down from the dome, entering her body. She glowed for a moment and pink wings sprouted from her back, lifting her up into the air. A gasp came from Raine and Genis, Lloyd had his mouth wide-open. Death was tempted to hit his younger self but didn't bother, eyeing the wings.

'Those are angel wings?' He raised an eyebrow at this. 'They look more like fairy ones though I'll have to admit, they _do_ fit her…though about this Remial…'

The blond angel spoke again, full of importance, his wings flapping gently. "The angel transformation will not be without pain. Yet, it is but for one night. Be strong and endure."

"I humbly accept this trial." The Chosen gazed at the man, her pink ones flapping. A feather or two came drifting down to the ground, fluttering side to side.

"The next seal lies far to the east across the sea. Offer your prayers at that altar."

"Yes, Lord Remial."

Death blinked his eyes, finding something suspicious. Why had she called her father _that_? Wouldn't she have said otherwise? He huffed, storing the information and inspected as the angel glowed back into a ball of light and shoot off. They could still hear his voice clearly, little feathers that had escaped from the wings vanishing before they touched the floor.

"I shall await you at the next seal, the Chosen of regeneration, my beloved daughter Colette."

After that, the blond came drifting back down and turned to the surprised trio, Kratos and Death not showing anything. Lloyd finally started moving, his mouth working. "Colette…has wings."

The Chosen smiled, all happy. "Uh-huh, and look, I can put them away too." She turned around so that everyone could get a clear view of it and the _fairy_ wings vanished within a blink of the eye.

Genis rushed closer, amazement all over his face. "Oh wow! That's so cool!"

"Here, look, look!" Colette took them out again and starts flapping them wildly. Genis, in return, started jumping like the little kid he is, entertained by it. Lloyd strolled over to the three adults, having gotten bored, as usual. He was more excited by the news he had heard from Remial.

"He said the next place is across the sea! That means we get to sail on a ship! Haha! I can't wait!" Death could see the joy on the teen's face and smiled lightly at it, shaking his head. Kratos glanced over to the boy then to the look-alike without anyone noticing.

Raine muttered to herself, going deep into thought. She took out a map from her bag, holding it out to see the content. "A ship…hmm. I wonder if there are any ships sailing with the way things are right now."

Death tilted his head to the side; he could tell that the woman had a hint of fear in her voice. "What do you mean?"

"Well, there are monsters in the water. A lot of them are dangerous and with the world as it is, they've gotten stronger and larger over the years. I've heard that one destroyed a battleship all on its own."

"Is that so?" The look-alike just shrugged. "That doesn't seem so bad. I've met worse back home."

Lloyd neared his older self. "Really? How so?"

"There are sea monsters big enough that can swallow an entire full-size ship in one bit and some that when you go inside, you can walk around as if it's a city. I know a few people that that has actually happened to. Some are even able to control the waters they are in and shift nature. Others are so dangerous that they can cause a ten mile high tidal wave and wipe out a whole continent into nothing more than a flat pile of dirt." He stated clearly, watching the faces of the three changed. "There's more but I don't remember all of it."

The first one to speak was Kratos. "Your world must be a very terrifying and dangerous place."

"It is but its home." Death chuckled. He was starting to feel more comfortable with this little group, even with Kratos. It wasn't something he wanted to happen but it did and he knew there was no stopping it. "Anyway, I think we should head to the coast to see what we can get."

Lloyd nodded, rotating to the two, who were still playing. "Okay you two, we get it already. That's enough."

The two slowly turned towards them, Colette putting her wings away, both smiling. They spoke together in a sing-song voice. "Okay."

Kratos was first in heading towards the teleporter, wanting to make sure that the area was clear, Death went next then the others. The heat was back on their bodies and he mentally sighed at it, wanting nothing more than to get out. Guess they had to maneuver through this place again.

* * *

Death sighed as he saw the sun above, setting slightly over the mountains. A shadow was starting to grow from the rocks, slowly inching. He stepped down the stairs, navigating through the pillars with everyone else. Lloyd and Genis were talking to each other while everyone else remained quiet. The red-clad teen abruptly let out a shout, pointing out to something in the distance. Everyone instantaneously twisted their attention towards it and spotted the green and white speck, running. Lloyd waved his hands, calling out to Noishe, while Death folded his arms. Kratos stepped forward, one hand on his sword, watching as the beast jumped the teen, giving him a slobbery lick. A few cries of agony came from him and the group just laughed.

When Lloyd finally tugged Noishe off, he turned to Colette seeing as he hasn't heard her voice join in. "Hey, Colette, what's wrong?"

The blond didn't answer, remaining quiet and appeared to be swaying. She suddenly collapsed onto her knees, shifting down into a more comfortable position.

Lloyd rushed over, kneeling down. "Are you okay?!"

A small whisper came from the sickly girl. "I'm…fine…"

Genis went to her side, examining over her with worry, Raine coming as well. Lloyd lifted Colette to her feet, holding her still, the mage on the other side, helping. The elf cried out. "You don't look fine at all! Your face is completely white! It's all my fault, I got carried away and kept making her pull her wings in and out."

"I don't think that had anything to do with it…" Lloyd muttered, motioning Death over to help. He jogged to Genis and took over, holding her up much higher than Lloyd could. The black-clothed man paused when the Professor came around.

She was a little angry with the fighting that was going on and glared sternly at the two kids. "Now's not the time for that!" Raine neared Colette, lifting her face up so she could get a better look. "Her lips are turning purple. We must get her to a doctor in the city immediately."

Raine was trying to order Death and Lloyd to help get her onto Noishe when Kratos' voice interrupted. He stepped forward, appearing calm as usual, "Wait, its best not to move her."

Everyone looked at him for answers, he sighed.

"Remember the angel's words. The angel transformation process requires her to overcome a trail. Rather than taking her to a doctor…it would be best to let her rest here."

There were still some arguments for that statement especially from Raine. Death kept his mouth shut and just went with the flow. Colette's weak voice broke the fighting. "I'm…okay. I'll be fine after a little rest. I'm sorry to cause so much trouble."

Lloyd frowned, both him and Death carrying her onto Noishe, trying to find a safe spot to camp. Kratos went ahead, helping in doing so. Raine remained close to Colette, checking up on her when giving glances of worry. Lloyd huffed. "Stop apologizing all the time, you dork! It's not as if you can help it. You were suddenly turned into an angel."

A sigh comes from Colette. "You're right…I'm sorry."

Death shaked his head, the girl just couldn't stop. Perhaps it was a habit or something, that was the only reason he could think of. A sign came from Lloyd once he heard those words he had told her _not_ to say. He glanced to the twin swordsmen, noticing the worried appearance and then to Genis, who had the same. 'Ah, it's so nice to have such friends…I only have _them_ left…'

* * *

"Hey, Death."

The man blinked, glancing up to his younger version, who was staring down at him. They had just finished eating dinner, curry by the way, Colette sitting to one side, resting but not sleeping. He had noticed that she hadn't eaten much of her dinner but didn't bother with it. Kratos was with Noishe, who had taken a great liking to the mysterious mercenary and he knew _why_. He could tell right away by the way the Professor would talk to the mercenary that she didn't trust him at all. There was some aim at him, seeing as he kept most of his past to himself like the way the older man did too but not much as Kratos got. Great, he was comparing himself to a different version of his father. Death wiggled his nose, wait, he could think about that later, Lloyd was in front of him.

"Yes?'

"Are you okay?" Lloyd asked by surprise, causing the other to blink again in confusion. "I mean you haven't been talking much to anyone tonight."

Death raised an eyebrow, watching as his younger self settled down next to him, folding his legs in. "Sorry, I'm just not in the mood."

"You know, there are some things I been wanting to ask about." Lloyd leaned back, placing his hands behind his head, staring at the sky above. There were thousand of stars tonight, all twinkling on and off. His brown eyes glanced to the other, who bended back with him.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Do you know who our real father is?"

Death paused and he felt Kratos twisting to him instantly. He was tempted to glare at the older man but resisted, giving a small smile to Lloyd. He knew that the mercenary didn't want to tell and he respected that, seeing what might happen if he did. Guess, he was going to lie his way out. "Not really. I don't really remember what he looks like anymore, not even his face. It's been along time since I've seen him. All I know is his back and some memories. "

Lloyd's face fell for a second. "Oh…I see."

The older version closed his eyes. "But I sure he's still alive, just like mine."

Hope came back, he was almost smiling. "Really!? How do you know that?"

"Well, it's a little hard to explain but I can just feel him somewhere out there. Think of it as an instinct, like how a parent knows when their child is in danger or in trouble. Kids should be able to feel if their parents are alive or not, though not all can do so. For me, it comes easy and I know for a fact that your father is out there somewhere, for all I know, he could still be searching for you." He heard a sigh come from Kratos. 'Damnit, you owe me for this.'

"So my father is still alive, that's good." Lloyd sat back up, staring off into space. He dusted off the extra sand on him and gave a big grin. Death reached up, patting the other on the head, rubbing the hair. The red-clad teen looked over curiously; this was the second time he had gotten that. "Wha…?"

"My _older_ friends and family do this to me all the time. I don't know really know _why_ since sometimes they do it for no good reason but after awhile, I kinda like it. It makes me feel important and welcomed. So I'm going to do it to you from now on." He retracted his hand, returning to his side. Lloyd stared before reaching up to touch his head. Death stood up, wiping off the sand and sauntered away, his scarf fluttering behind and his footsteps silent. His hands were inside his jacket's pockets and hopped onto of a rock, staring out into the distance, feeling for the wind. It was cool as it always was in the night. The fire in the middle giving them light along with the purple tinted one from the moon. Death's red eyes stared at it and continued on walking, jumping off into the sand. A little stroll in the dark would keep him occupied for the time being.

* * *

"What did you say?" Death asked, not believing his ears (he had come back a while ago). He almost dropped the bag he was currently holding to the ground in shock, staring at Kratos as if he had grown another head or maybe smiled is a better word. Even the others in this little group were watching the badass mercenary except for Raine, glaring suspiciously. Colette, who was feeling better from a little bit of rest, tilted her head.

"I'd like to challenge you to a duel." Kratos repeated, his stoic expression the same. "Out of this group, you and I are the most powerful and most experienced in combat. I'd like to see how _good_ you really are."

"I see but there's just this one thing you're forgetting about." Death raised a finger, trying to bring out his point. "I don't use my swords."

The red head narrowed his eyes, not liking the answer. "And way not? If you don't use them, then why are they still at your belt?

"That's a little complicated. Right now, I just want to use them if it's in an emergency or if they're needed." The look-alike argued back, Kratos didn't return it.

Lloyd gaped, feeling left out. "Hey, what about me?"

Kratos turned his head towards the twin swordsmen. "Your swordsmanship is still lacking and you're leaving yourself far too many opening that people would easily take advantage of. You're still flinging your swords randomly, hoping they will hit."

"What?!"

Death interrupted before anything further could happen. "No, Lloyd has improved, slowly but he has. You can't become the best of anything without a lot of hard work and practice." He folded his arms, staring at the two of them. "Kratos, if you're so demanding with the way he fights then why don't _you_ train him? I think it would be best for the _both_ of you."

The red head gazed back, curious at what he had meant. "What are you talking about?"

The black-clocked man just smiled meaningly at the other until it clicked.

"So you _do_ know." Kratos grunted softly, slanting his eyes before gazing away. It was obvious what that look had meant. His worst fear was coming true. Death knew about him and that he was Lloyd's father. Though at the same time, a little of weight on his shoulder weakened and he could breath easier than before. He knew that the look-alike had no intention of telling and if he had wanted to, he wouldn't have lied to Lloyd. Kratos smiled lightly, the darkness of the night hiding it though Death could see it clearly. "Alright, I'll do that."

Lloyd stood up, a little astounded that Kratos actually agreed to it. "Wait?! You're really going to train me?" He had actually wanted to ask the man but he didn't have the guts. The red head wasn't exactly an easy person to converse with after all. He just didn't want to hold the group back and protect everyone so that no one would ever have to suffer. At a sudden spark of wisdom, Lloyd's eyes widened for a moment, twisting to Death, who just smiled. Had he known his wish? He shaked his head, no, he couldn't have, it was impossible. Kratos nodded to the question Lloyd had asked, answering the teen, who went back to the older man and grinned. "Okay!"

"Then I guess I'll have to accept this." Death stretched his back and headed off into the distance, Kratos following along. It was a friendly one that would end with some minor cuts and bruises, nothing major as they had to travel back to Triet to pick up some supplies before heading onto the Ossa Trail tomorrow.

As the two headed into an open area, everyone else tagged along, keeping a safe distance from the two. The fighters didn't take any notice of it and stared at each other. Death yanked out his two guns, swinging them around by the handles. "Are there any rules to this thing?"

"Yes, no magic and no killing." Kratos drawed his sword, sliding a foot back and lifted it up towards his face.

Death remained calm and still, not really taking this seriously. "Well, I guess you'll be pretty bruised up after this."

"You're over-confident; don't let that get to you."

A chuckle came. "Kratos, I think you're underestimating me." He dashed forward, faster than any normal person and reached the mercenary before the man could react, his eyes widening at the amazing speed. The group in the back was mouth gaping, watching as the battle began. Death's face was close to Kratos', a few inches away before spinning around, kicking the older man at the side, sending him flying. Kratos grunted, regaining his balance in mid-air and landed on the sand but before he could straighten himself up, a foot connected with his stomach, winding him and slamming him into the dirt. A puff of it flew and Death jumped back, gaining some distance, tossing his guns playfully into the air, a bored expression on his face.

"A-Amazing." Genis muttered.

"So cool. He was able to catch Kratos off guard and beat him." Lloyd whispered, his eyes wide with shock. This was Kratos, _the_ Kratos, the man that was good with everything and he had just gotten his ass handed to him by his older self. Colette and Raine didn't know what to say, analyzing the battle.

The red head huffed, getting back up, dusting off the dirt that rested on his purple outfit. He glared coldly at his opponent, sending shivers down everyone's spines except for Death, who just continued to smile. He stepped forward, his sword at the side. "You're right; I _clearly_ underestimated your abilities. I wasn't excepting you to be _that_ fast."

"Told you." Death placed his hands on his hips. "Well, I had to make up for the things I've lost. Strength for speed."

"I guess I can't allow myself to go easy either." The mercenary grumbled, this time starting this round. He rushed forward, reflecting any bullets that were aimed at him. The gunner remained still, moving back when needed, red eyes watching each advancement. The sword came forward, stabbing towards Death's neck. At the last moment, he ducked, whirling his body around and hit Kratos' foot, losing his balance again. The red head frowned at this action and tried to bring his weapon back down, slicing into the sand. The other dodged, rolling away, leaping up, doing a back-flip before facing Kratos again. Death looked quite smug and placed his guns in the hoists. He raised his fists up, tightening the scarf on his neck so it wouldn't get in the way and slid his foot back, slanting his body to the side.

Kratos went onto the offensive again, this time placing his sword into the sheath, one hand on it, ready for use. He dashed forward, charging and stopped before reaching Death, using his free hand to catch the other off guard. The black-clothed man blocked it with his arm and tried to stop what was going to happen next but he was too late. The red head yanked his sword forward, thrusting the handle into Death's stomach. He gasped out, his breath winded and staggered back, coughing. One eye closed at the pain, grinding his teeth. Kratos took that moment to return a favor, proceeding to kick the younger man in the stomach. Death saw this coming and hopped aside, evading it. He grabbed the suspended foot and pulled it towards him, letting Kratos stumble before he twisted around, hitting the man at the back.

"Are we done yet?" The look-alike asked, finding this not worth his time. He was holding back greatly and he was hiding it from everyone. He faked himself being tired, panting deeply. It would be best if he didn't get questioned for his unusual abilities and suspicious attitude. "I'm getting a little tired."

"Not yet." Kratos swung his sword forward, aiming to hit but with the flat side. Death dodged and pulled out both guns, using them as blockers whenever he wasn't fast enough to get out. It continued like this, him evading every attack while the red head would try to get a strike, quickening his movements and attempts every passing second.

It wasn't until Death made _one_ move, Kratos following it with a slash, determining that that was it. He used his guns to halt the blade above his head, using his strength to keep it up. It was at a stalemate, both pushing to earn their victory. He twisted to the side, letting the sword fall and raised Thanatos to Kratos' head before he could evade while the other slashed his own weapon. Both stopped before they could make the final blow. Kratos' sword was at the look-alike's neck and Death's at the red head's forehead.

The two of them were staring at each other, it was a tie. Raine sighed from the back, having enough of this and stepped out, storming over to the two. "Alright, that's enough, it's a draw. No more fighting."

Death retracted his weapons, placing them back into their cover. Kratos did the same, muttering something under his breath.

"Hey, Kratos?" The black-clothed man asked. "That attack when you hit with the hilt of your sword really surprised me and you're pretty fast. I hope I didn't hurt you too much, did I?"

Kratos shaked his head. "No, you didn't but I still can't tell about how strong you are. You were holding back on me."

"Well, of course, you were too. I didn't want to kill you and at that time when I caught your leg, I had to quickly think of a different way to hurt you than breaking your bones. That wouldn't be good to us if you can't walk tomorrow."

The red head raised an eyebrow. "Break my leg?" Although it wasn't seen, he mentally shuttered at the thought. That _wouldn't_ be a good thing.

Raine placed her hands on her waist and leaned over as if scolding the two. "It's going to be a long day tomorrow so let's all get some rest. Let's go."

"Right!" Death kept his smile on and jogged back to the campsite with everyone else, the kids chattering with him, all amazed that he was able to tie with the mercenary. Kratos followed soon after, not sure what to think about.

* * *

"Hmm? What's this place?" Death wondered out loud, stepping into a tent. He had just finished gathering the supplies on his side from Triet and he was pretty sure that everyone else was still getting theirs so he had decided to take a walk around the town. After some argument, they had chosen to stay here for the night to recover instead of heading start to the trail. Oh well, it didn't really matter to him. Anyway, the town was the same as it was two days ago, all hot and sandy, nothing new in that. While he was wandering the place, he came up to something, a tent by the looks of it with a weird eye on it. It looked familiar and decided to go in for fun.

"Oh, a customer." A voice called out from the table in the middle. A mid-aged woman was standing there with a crystal ball in front. "Have you come here for a reading?"

Death blinked. "Oh no, I was just curious about what was here."

"Well if you're interested, I'm telling free friendship fortunes right now. Would you like one on your friends?" She held out her palm, waiting to see if she'll get the hand.

"Hmm…" He tilted his head. "No, thanks." Death smiled softly. "I'd like to see how things turn out by what I observe; it's more fun this way. And I don't want any readings about my future since I already know what happens. After all, this is going to be a _long_ journey."

* * *

Okay, done with this chapter. I'll create a profile for this fanfic and for Death (for the differences between Lloyd and him) on my profile page okay. So if I update anything, I'll put it there. Death has a lot of secrets doesn't he, don't worry they'll be revealed over time. Also if there is anything I might have missed, please tell me, sometimes I forget to mention stuff.

Oh and please review!


	5. The Ossa Trail

**Title: Interference **

**Author**: Metamorcy

**Rating**: M

**Disclaimer**: Do I have to keep repeating it? Is there any point now?

**Summary**: Weakened and sealed, a different yet older version of Lloyd is forced to travel with the chosen's group in order to regain his powers but he's keeping more things to himself then he's saying, a lot more.

**N/A**: If any of you are really religious, I apologize in advance but this was the only way it could have been done.

'_' – thoughts

"_" – speaking view

Just to clear that up.

**

* * *

**

Chapter 5: The Ossa Trail

Death yawned, it was late in the night and everyone had just finished eating dinner. He leaned back against a tree, looking over the campsite and watched the group chatter away. They were at the entrance of the Ossa Trail, about to head into it tomorrow in the morning, hoping that they could make it out and to the shore in one day without any interrupts. He stretched his limbs, shifting around his weapons so they wouldn't budge up into his side. The twin swords were resting at his waist, idle, but he still couldn't get rid of the habit of reaching down, ready to use them, to use his powers that flowed throughout his entire body. It was just a natural reaction, one he couldn't forget like how a person who rode a bike couldn't either.

He gazed up at the stars and wiggled his nose. He found something suspicious about those them, like it was different than in any sky he had seen. Something just wasn't right about it. As the wind blew by, fluttering his scarf, flapping beside him gently, he closed his eyes. 'That's right…' Death opened them, glaring at the setting scenery. 'I'd almost forgot since it had been so long ago. This world…I _hated_ everything about it…'

"Death!" A voice called out, snapping him out of his thoughts. He glanced over, observing a familiar red-clad teen run up to him with Genis behind. The two stopped in front and stared down at him questioningly. Kratos was in the back of the camp, the opposite side, with Noishe while Raine and Colette were talking about some history lesson. Lloyd kneeled down so he was leveled with the older version of himself. "We want you to answer a few more things for us."

"Is that so?" The look-alike smirked, tilting his head. The large bang covered his face in a shadow, hiding his real expression behind the abyss. His voice altered slightly, more menacing.

Genis noticed the changed tone. "You don't sound _very_ surprised. Its like you were _expecting_ us to ask."

"Maybe, maybe not, who knows." Death shrugged his shoulder absently. "Now, what do you what to know?"

"About the Maranians, we want to know more about them."

"You mean you want a better _explanation_ about them, correct?" Death repeated, rubbing the bottom of his chin. The two continued to stare at him, the mage, of course, was the one who wanted to ask and Lloyd just came for the ride. He smirked, standing up from his spot, dusting off his pants. "Alright but we'll have to get away from the others, the others will hear us if we're not far enough."

They nodded, following the look-alike into the surrounding woods. It was quiet with a few sounds of snapping twigs and Lloyd shivered at the cold air and darkness, wondering what was waiting for them. Genis didn't take things any better, cuddling up against his best friend. They went so far that the two had thought that maybe they have gotten lost.

"Okay, this should be good enough. Now even _he_ can't hear us." Death settled down in the middle of a small field, the others following. He leaned against a rock and looked up to gaze at the stars. "Okay, I'm going to give you two a history lesson. Nothing big especially for you, Lloyd, you won't get bored and it involves the stars."

"Really?"

"Yes." He nodded. "You know that I came from another planet." He got stares, saying that they already knew. "Well, you see those stars up there, well, some of them are actually planets, hidden in disguise and others are more like the sun. The bright sparkly surface of them are created from the reflection of the brighter ones, that's why its so hard to tell which one is and which one isn't. Not only that, most of them have a powerful force field that surrounds the entire planet, giving them the illusion of a sun's fiery surface so that people won't get suspicious. Also, do any of you know about how the universe was created, how everything started out?"

"Do you mean how this planet was formed?" Genis asked while Lloyd folded his legs.

Death sighed. "I'll take that as a no. Okay, billions of billions of trillions etc. etc. years ago, there were originally _three_ planets that survived in the entire universe, how they were made was lost in history. Anyway, there was a single sun that supported light and growth on them and the Maranians' technology on all three worlds were highly advanced, they could basically do whatever they wanted. Travel through time; recreate matter, doing things that were beyond physics, completely twisting all understanding and knowledge into a void. Each world bore a being more powerful than any of the people that lived there, one of them being twin siblings. These four beings became known as the 'Creators', they had the ability to do anything and everything they wanted, they could do things that no one else was able to, control matter, etc. They didn't even live on air; there was no need for that for them. However, later on, the strongest of the four temporarily lost his mind and destroyed everything. All there was left was darkness, no life, no air, nothing solid, everything was just gone except for a few specks of things here and there, people living on what they had left as well as the animals. Once he regained control, the four decided to recreate everything, placing planets as they are now. They constructed life, death, air, everything, and the species that had survived the blast came to live onto the first planet, the original one. The Maranians became the first people to live and they had the abilities of a god from their knowledge and power (of course, the Creators being superior). However, there weren't very many of them so the people gathered together and placed an everlasting spell on their blood to keep it alive for all eternity. That would explain why I'm a Maranian while both of my parents were human. Afterwards, the Creators made other races, humans, elves, demons, mystics, etc, etc. Of course, each planet had to go through its stages of evolution until it was fit to grow life and sustain it along with the living." Death took a deep breath. "Okay, staying with me so far?"

He got two nods and continued.

"Everything was good and well for over a hundred trillions years until the Creators found it too hard to keep up with things; after all, they had their own lives going about. So they asked their own people to watch over the worlds and protect the populace living there, usually one per planet. This is where the terms 'gods' got born from since regular people viewed them differently. Also, while there was a single individual watching over a world, a more powerful one was surveying a galaxy, and there are many of those too. Either way, the Creators supervised over the entire universe but they just wanted to make sure it wouldn't fall apart and left everything pretty much alone. However, one day, one of them (not the same as the last one) allowed his powers to consume him and destroyed himself, taking out a fourth of the universe, the part he controlled."

"Really? Which one?" Lloyd asked, surprisingly keeping up.

"It was the last one, I don't really know the name or gender since its been lost in history and that it had happen a long long ago. I do know that the twins are girls, one named Maraee and the other, Aura. Anyway, when the fourth one perished, the person's powers still maintained so the three decided to split them apart into spheres. They sent the powers to certain individuals, turning them into 'Guardians', giving them many different abilities, depending on the one they got though. And since it was probably only maybe about a fortieth of the original, they were much weaker compared to the Creators but much stronger than one that controlled an entire galaxy and much more. To help better understand, a Guardian is a being that controls over one certain element, however, those powers can extend since they were all once one as the bearers get older and have more control over their abilities. They help in keeping the balance but these days, they don't interfere unless necessary. They want people to lead themselves to their own salvation or destruction by their own will."

Genis 'hummed' to himself then glanced up. "What about these Creators? Did they ever fight for who the strongest is? Surely they would want to know? And do they have families?"

"No, the three of them are really close but we do know who is the most powerful. The top one is the other, a man, and the first one to lose control but he has no will for power, he doesn't even care much about it. Aura doesn't like to fight at all; she's known as the 'Creator of Light' and her older sister, Maraee, doesn't really give a shit and became recognized as the 'Creator of Darkness'. They _do_ have children, which are similar in strength.

Genis tilted his head. "Wait, that doesn't really explain much about the Maranians."

"I know but I gave you their history and other stuff that I don't want to be asked later on. There isn't much to say about them just that they've been alive longer than this universe."

"Still…" The mage was deep in thought while Lloyd stood up, scratching his head, trying to process all the information he had been given. Death could only sigh, leaning back to stretch his bones since they had been in that position for so long.

"You guys can think about it later, how about we head back to the group before they start letting their imagination to wander? That should give you enough time to figure things out."

Lloyd nodded, smiling. "I guess we'll have to do that. Thanks for explaining again, we really appreciate it."

The older version could only smile. "Your welcome."

* * *

They came up to the main area of the Ossa Trail where a large tree was at the side with a road that went up. Beside it was some cliffs surrounding the place and Death stretched his back, rubbing his neck. He didn't seem to wake up from his sleepy state when he heard a loud commanding voice.

"Stop!"

The rest of the group flinched, turning their heads to the speaker, who was standing on the cliff to the left. It was a woman strangely dressed compared to the others in the group. She had a purple robe wrapped around her body with a pink scarf along her waist, holding the ends together. Everyone below drew their weapons, all except for Death, who remained uninterested, not very unconcerned about the newcomer. Kratos noticed it and gave the look-alike a glare, not sure what the man was thinking. The woman jumped down with ease and landed in front of their path, blocking it. Everyone couldn't help but notice the large rack that was obviously popping out revealingly at the chest.

Lloyd blinked his eyes, confused and blushing red at the visible cleavage. "W-What?"

The group relaxed somewhat for a second and Colette, being her naive self, asked. "Is she a friend of yours, Lloyd?"

The red head raised an eyebrow, staring at the woman. "Not that I'm aware of."

The female, Death remembering her as Sheena, was the one that joins the group later on in the journey. He sighed; memories of those times were really coming back to him. Sheena asked, her eyes on Colette. "Is the Chosen of Mana among you?"

Of course, Colette just had to answer. "Oh, that's me." Death wanted to hit the blond up-side the head but couldn't once Sheena got into a battle position.

"Prepare to die!" She ran forward, instantly telling everyone that she was an enemy with Lloyd and Kratos racing forward to try and stop the assassin. Death remained still, not even bothering in getting out his weapons. Just as the woman was close enough without any interruptions, Colette tripped backwards and hit a red lever that was right behind, out of view. A door opened up…right below the woman. Sheena paused for a second before falling in, letting out a piercing scream.

Raine, Genis and Lloyd muttered an "Uh-oh." Colette followed soon after with her own and Kratos remained quiet. Death couldn't help but snicker, covering his mouth to hide it, shaking his head. Yep, that clumsiness of her was really a blessing. The Chosen stood up instantly, rushing over to the spot. "Oh, no! What should I do? I did it again…"

This went off to Lloyd feeling sorry for the assassin and Genis sprouting out words that confused the poor twin swordsmen. Death remained in the back, watching with a bored expression and turned as Kratos began moving to the side, up that hill. He only got a few feet before twisting back.

His voice interrupted all dialogue that was going on. "…We should get moving."

Lloyd argues this. "Hey! Shouldn't we try to find out who that woman was?"

"She'll come after us again on her own. This area is too confined and the footing is poor. It would be wise not to linger."

"Ah, I wouldn't worry too much, Kratos." Death entered, strolling past the group with a layback sensation. Kratos just glared. "We won't have any trouble until we reach the end of this place. We just need to keep our guard up and stay alert but I think you would do that regardless. Thanks for taking up the job, Kratos." He smiled and then pointed behind everyone, clearly ignoring the intensified glower from the red head, who was behind. "And Noishe ran away again but I think he has his own way of getting around so no worries."

Lloyd took this moment to glance back. "Yep, he's gone again. Oh well."

Kratos growled at Death, making everyone shiver at the coldness in the voice. "You should perhaps learn to stay attentive by yourself. I can not keep looking after you and this entire group forever. One day, I'm not going to be here and then what?"

Death continued to beam, his eyes meeting the other with the same iciness. His back was turned to the group but there was something in the ruby pools that scared Kratos even though he didn't show it. "Oh, wouldn't you like to know? When that day comes, perhaps you might regret something important. Betrayal isn't a nice thing even though people do it all the time, its quite common as a person killing the other for the money or revenge. But I think what people need is the ability to move on from that…" Death trailed off, walking past Kratos and entered the area by himself, the others slowly following behind, questioning his change in attitude, it was quite sudden. But no one did, no one wanted to and Kratos remained in shock especially at the word 'betrayal'.

'Does…Death know about my hidden motive? I'll have to inquire him about it later when I get the chance.' Kratos narrowed his eyes, now suspicious of the man. He stomped to the front after passing Death, the rest trailing, not sure what exactly had happened. Not that they wanted to ask.

The group walked quietly for an hour, everyone afraid to speak and whenever someone tried, they were on the receiving end of one of Kratos' glares. Finally, Colette placed her hands together and shrunk slightly. "Um…Mr. Kratos?"

The red head turned to her. "Yes?"

"Are you angry?"

"No, I'm not." He blurted before twisting back to field, his concentration split in two by everything that was going on. Half was keeping watch on the area, ensuring that no one would get hurt especially Lloyd and Colette while the other half was on the mysterious Death. He growled quietly to himself, increasing the nervousness in the air.

"Oh…" She trailed off, failing in keeping a conversation going. Raine was glaring at the mercenary's back, finding it insulting at his altitude towards everyone. She grinded her teeth together and was about to say something when she was beaten to the punch.

"Kratos, you're really bumming out everyone, you know." Lloyd neared the older man, trying to cheer the atmosphere, hoping it might just work. "You need to be happier. You look like you're about to _kill_ someone."

"That's none of your business." Kratos quickened his pace, leaving the group of five behind. The black-clothed man snorted, raising his arms up behind his head and closed his eyes, feeling the wind blow onto his face. His scarf flapped gently in it and just smiled, already knowing what was wrong with the man. They continued on, only stopping for a snack and a few fights here and there.

As they reached the end of the path, Death noticed that there was a large wooden board against a hill. It was quite big, as if covering something up and he knew that any second, it was going to fall and reveal someone. He tugged at his guns, getting ready and Kratos noticed this but didn't do anything.

Then that so called board fell, creating a loud bang, sending dust and dirt out. The group had to cover their eyes for a moment, not wanting any to get into their lids. When it cleared, it revealed a large dark hole and a familiar figure standing on top. The Chosen's group were startled by the sudden appearance and Death couldn't help but snicker lightly at her form. It was obvious that the woman was tired, seeing as she had bruises and cuts all over her, hair out of place with a rip or two on the clothes, probably created from the fall. There was sweat dripping down the side of her face, breathing hard and rotated towards the group when she noticed them.

"W…wait!"

Lloyd relaxed, looking really surprised, expressing it freely. "Wow, she actually caught up with us."

And Colette being Colette ambled closer to the enemy. There was a sigh of relief on her face, hands clapped tightly. "Oh, thanks goodness!"

Sheena panicked a little, remembering about her last painful incident. She took a step back, right into a defensive position. "D…don't move!"

The Professor couldn't help but compliment on it. "A wise decision."

"Yeah or she'll get another one of Colette's mishaps." Death snickered, enjoying the show.

Sheena huffed angrily, glaring at the look-alike, she seemed a little surprised that there were twins (she didn't notice before since her whole attention was on the Chosen) but pushed it aside. She summoned some paper cards into her hands. "I won't be caught off guard this time! Prepare to die!"

"Must people always say that? It's so stupid, doesn't anyone tell people that?" The black-clocked man spoke boringly, he had heard that faze _way_ too many times. "It must be contagious, maybe a disease."

Lloyd looked puzzled by the random talking, forgetting about the present danger for a moment. Kratos took over, getting into the assassin's way before she could harm the twin swordsmen. "What?"

"Nothing! Pay attention, you idiot! Or else I'll be dragging your corpse and soul back to the living world from hell!" He called out, firing at the woman but she was fast, almost like him, dodging all of the attacks. She took a few more cards out with a different design on them and placed them in front of her, floating. Sheena made a strange symbol with her hands, flashing words that were too fast for him to catch and then tossed the bundle to the ground. A large puff of smoke appeared and Kratos, who was closest to it, raised his shield up just in time to block a large boney hand from clawing him in half. It grabbed a hold of the guard, surprising the red head greatly, eyes widen. Kratos tried to hack at the arm and as the smoke faded away, it revealed the creature. It was a giant bird, floating in mid-air with a strange circle on its back. Death thought it appeared more of a steering wheel from a boat with foreign designs on the ends. Genis threw some spells its way while Raine casted protection spells in the back. He didn't get another look when Sheena came rushing towards him, seeing him as the most threatening (his far off attacks). He grunted, stepping aside to evade the attack, not wanting to fight close-up but no matter how hard he tried to get away, she kept coming. Well, he might as well humor the poor woman. "Hi, there, what's your name?"

"There's no need to learn the name for a person I'm about to kill!" Sheena yelled, sending attack after attack at the man.

"Oh, that's too bad…" He leaned back, missing the edges of the card, keeping his distance. Lloyd came running to his rescue, basically randomly hacking away at the woman while earning a comment from Kratos to do strategy but either way, she was too fast. The assassin glided in for an opening, implanting a card on Lloyd's chest and then called out her attack. "Pyre Seal!" A large explosion occurred and the swordsman was sent back, tumbling across the ground, loosing one of his swords. Raine and Colette instantly went to his side while Death kept the woman back, firing at her randomly.

"Damn, if only I had some special attacks with these…" Death cursed, not used to fighting with guns only. He didn't even know any techs for them, the only ones were in magic and swords and a few others. Maybe now was the best time to learn some. The two clashed together a few more times, no one able to help since they were moving too quick for anyone to catch up. Kratos and Genis were occupied with the bird-creature, trying to keep it away from the rest of the group. Death finally snapped. "Oh, fuck this!" He dropped his weapons and tackled the woman at the waist while at the same time getting a scold from Raine for cursing. He sent her flying, watching the assassin do a back flip, setting herself up-right. Death didn't bother in retrieving his guns and shifted to the side, looks like he was going to have to fight with his fists, oh joy. He twitched for a second. 'Oh wait, I don't have any with martial arts techs either…what horrible luck…'

Sheena dashed forward, meeting every strike he sent after her, blocking while at the same time, he made sure that those cards wouldn't him anywhere. He had a few close calls, only dodging at the last second. It was soooo tempting to just use his swords and kill her on the spot but no, that couldn't happen. That would mess this world up completely and it was already screwed up with him here, changing things. At the last second, he managed to land a hit to her side, shoving her away. During that time, the monster fell, disappearing in a poof of smoke, letting out a large roar. Kratos flicked his blade and turned to last enemy. Sheena stepped back, breathing heavily, tightening her grip on her weapons. She moaned softly, hand on her injury, it was a given that she was outnumbered, one to six. "Damnit, just you wait! I swear I will kill you all next time!" She then turned into smoke, disappearing from sight.

Lloyd instantly ran up, calling out a "Wait!". He sighed, looking a little confused at everything that had just happened. "Why are people trying to kill us?"

Kratos answered as Death bended down for his guns. "There are always those that reject salvation."

Lloyd turned completely around when Genis answered as well, continuing off from where the red head had spoken. "Maybe she's a Desian."

"I doubt it." Death grumbled, placing the weapons away. "She didn't look like one."

"Who know? At any rate, we are in contact danger. That's all we need to know." Kratos huffed, crossing his arms, twisting his head away. That action caused his bangs to flip and Death could just hear the fangirls squealing, he had enough to deal with at home.

The older version of Lloyd made a face. "Oh well, this seems kind of fun."

The glare was sent his way. "This isn't a game!"

"Never said it was."

Raine in the back muttered something under her breath, deep in thought. "Those clothes…"

Lloyd and the group managed to hear it, the two arguing stopped, turning to the woman. "Professor, something wrong?"

Everyone stared except for Death, who already knew what she was thinking about. He felt unfamiliar with the group and that only pulled himself further away, he didn't _want_ to care. 'No, there's no need to get attracted to these people. After all, they'll all meet the same fate by my hand, willingly or not.' He smiled sadly, hearing Raine answer the question.

"No, its nothing. Let's go."

"Yeah…" Lloyd didn't sound convinced but let it go. "Anyway, let's go look for a place where we can get a ship." He pumped his fist into the air, appearing extremely childish.

"Then the best place would be Izoold, that's the closest place to the shore." Kratos stated, still throwing a glare at the look-alike, who merely shrugged it off.

Just as they were leaving the area, a large roar echoed from the cave. A loud earthquake rumbled soon after, enough to alarm the group into sitting down. When it stopped, they looked amongst each other.

"What…was that?!" Lloyd yelled, staring into the pitch-black cave in curiosity.

"Must be some powerful monster, probably woke up when that woman fell in. It'd be best to ignore it and continue on." Kratos affirmed, his hand resting on his sword.

Colette didn't look too happy about that decision. "But wait! If it's left alone, it could attack the villagers, right? We should go in and stop that from happening."

"I agree with that. Let's go!" Lloyd cheered, grinning. Death shaked his head but didn't argue, he knew what waited inside that tunnel, the infamous Sword Dancer.

"I disagree. It's too dangerous and we have higher priorities than monster-hunting. It's best to leave that to the townspeople." Kratos continued, feeling an evil radiance from the darkness. The Sages remained quite in this display until Genis stomped in, going to his best friend's side, glaring at the older man.

Death finally had enough. "Kratos just go along with them. They're too stubborn to listen. The least we can do is go with them and make sure they don't get hurt. And even if you said 'No', what's the chance of them sneaking off together just to fight it. I know Lloyd…or more like my younger self the best. That's the exact thing he'll do."

The faces on the three kids brightened instantly, they had at least one adult on their side.

"I agree with Death on this one, even if we say otherwise, they'll still go through with it." Raine nodded, gazing up at the red head, who sighed at what he was hearing.

"Fine, do what you will." He seemed pissed and went ahead first into the tunnel, Death following right behind. The rest remained at a distance, gathering close to each other for protection. It was dark and the only light source they could use was the one outside but that was slowly disappearing. They kicked around in the darkness for a while, using their hearing to sense monsters. Sounds of water dripping reached their ears and they remained on their guard. Death was able to see clearly, leading the group along to the room that held the monster. They came up to a section that was lighted with oil lamps, hanging above. Raine gave a short lecture about the tunnel while questioning why they were still working, her voice echoing down the pathways. Death could tell they were getting close to the monster at hand as he felt the familiar presence surround him.

"I...FIGHT...YOU...STRONG...FIGHT...WITH...ME..." A voice, hard and scratchy called out. The group froze at that second, glancing around the area they had walked into. It was large and spacious, big enough for a major battle. Death scratched the back of his head, walking forward and kneeled down in front of a huge skull. It came up to his chest with massive horns growing out at the both sides. The rest of its skeleton body was on the floor with four large swords surrounding it.

"What's he talking about? He doesn't look so dangerous…" Genis asked, coming to Death's side.

"He wants to fight with us." Kratos retorted as if stating the obvious.

"Should we say yes?"

"…Might as well."

"GOOD…FIGHT…" The ground started to shake and they backed up, watching as the skeleton began putting itself back together. It had four arms, each one holding a sword and the bones were grey and enormous. It let out a mighty growl that made the ground rumble again. Kratos and Lloyd went to the front, protecting the spell casters from harm but ended up guarding as the blades came crashing down repeatedly. The monster's strength was unbelievable, slamming both swordsmen at once and winning. Colette went to the back, casting Angel's Feather, Raine with Proton and Genis with Stalagmite. Death continued to fire but he knew that they weren't getting anywhere and fast. His bullets bounced off the bones, useless. The Sword Dancer wasn't harmed by any of the physical attacks of the others only the light spells that were thrown his way but even that didn't do much. It turned to the two girls in the back and stomped closer, ignoring the men.

"Damn it, Colette, Professor!" Lloyd yelled, hacking away at the bones, hoping he could catch the monster's attention. "Demon Fang! Tiger Blade!"

As Lloyd pounded attack after attack on the monster, Kratos pulled back, trying to think of a way to get through this battle. Colette and Raine ran aside in two different directions so it couldn't attack both and continued casting. Genis continued to send spell after spell but still nothing worked. He munched on some orange gels to keep his energy up and continued firing his most powerful ones he knew. Death paused for a moment, watching the scene carefully, deep in thought. How did he do it last time…? Come on, remember. He recalled defeating the Sword Dancer long ago but how did he and the others _do_ it. He knew that the monster's weakness was light but that didn't seem to be working. 'Maybe I could use my magic or swords…but that wouldn't be good. It'll have to be pretty strong since by some twist of nature, it had gotten stronger than before. Shit, I need a distraction, something that'll allow me to send a spell.'

"Arg!!" Lloyd fell to the ground, his swords flying aside like mere twigs and stared up at the Sword Dancer that was looming over him. He had made the wrong move of standing in front of the monster and look where he is now. He took a deep breath, backing up on the ground. Everyone's faces changed, racing forward to help their fallen comrade. The Sword Dancer lifted up all its swords, staring down at Lloyd with its empty sockets. A gleam, a glowing yellow came from inside and the weapons came crashing down. Kratos gasped, reaching out, hoping to save his son in time but Death beat him to it, kicking the twin swordsmen out of the way. The blade slashed across Death's chest and hit the ground, covering the field in dust. He coughed, gazing at his wounds where blood was spraying out like rain. His clothes were torn apart, four deep cuts down his chest. Blood continued to gush out from the slashes, covering his clothes in a deep sticky red and he grinded his teeth together to ignore the pain, glaring coldly at the demon. Crimson dripped out of his mouth and he coughed, throwing up blood before licking his lips. His guns were dropped to the ground and waited for the next blow patiently. The Sword Dancer took one sword and stabbed Death right through the flesh and bone at the stomach. His body was lifted up at the force and heard a familiar cracking. His expression didn't change, more blood spilling out and twisted his frame in agony. Scarlet pooled below at his feet and finally reached up, grabbing the sword that was stuck through him. His visage changed in the moment, his lips sliding upward into a grin.

He started laughing, unaffected by the fatal stab that would have killed a regular person. His shoulders shook in humor even as it caused more blood to flow out of his wounds. Then his head came down in a snap, his hair covering the eyes, his smile still shining in the darkness.

"You'll pay for that." He chuckled, watching as the dust dissipated. He had to act fast to make sure that no suspicion was placed on him, it wouldn't be good if they saw a sword through his stomach and still living perfectly fine. Death yanked the blade out roughly, tearing apart more flesh, eyes glowing dangerously. "Let the calls of hell arise! Reaper's Upbringing!"

A spiral formed, twisting out. The group covered their eyes as they heard the sounds of bones cracking, snapping in half. A dark air of evil and destruction was blended in with the surroundings and darkness enveloped the room. The tunnel went silent with the lamps swinging side to side until one fell down and shattered its glass shards, the pieces flying into the middle of the man-made tornado. Screams of pain was heard, multiple of them, all crying and whaling in dismay and misery. Expressions of fear grew on the faces and covered their ears as they listened to it. And then there was a loud laughter, cruel and evil like the air. It echoed over the screams and sent shivers down everyone's spines. They opened their eyes when the laughter stopped, watching the area and Death jumped out, landing beside the group. The laughter was gone and the cries were consumed in the spiral and when it cleared, the demon was on the ground in pieces. Death sighed, holding his stomach and concentrated in using magic to change his clothes and clean himself up, to get rid of the blood and wounds, but the stab had taken quite a bit out of him. He winced when he felt the cut (it was still there but not bleeding anymore) and wobbled to the side, using the wall for assistance, shifting behind everyone. Silence fell over the room.

"Is it…dead?" Lloyd asked hesitatingly, watching as the creature disappeared, muttering about something. He held his twin blades out just incase after grabbing them, suspecting another powerful attack. Once he knew it was gone for sure, he collapsed to the ground, his weapons scattering around him. He reached up, nursing his bruised side where he had been kicked and glanced over the group, checking up on them.

Death was in the back, leaning against the wall, taking deep breaths. He couldn't believe the Sword Dancer would be _this_ powerful, if only he had been at full strength or at least a fourth of it, he could have easily wiped it out without having any recoil on his body. He cursed himself, sliding down the wall. Out of all of them, he was probably the most wounded (for now), especially when he took that hit that was supposed to kill Lloyd. The look-alike glanced to Kratos, who had his arms crossed and was staring at the monster's spot sternly.

Genis huffed, settling down next to his sister, Colette beside him. "W-What was that monster? A-And that attack?"

"I don't know, I've never seen such a thing." Raine casted first-aid on Lloyd and he stopped rubbing the area. "Perhaps it's a demon."

"So strong…" Lloyd muttered under his breath, crawling closer to the Professor.

Kratos grunted, gazing down the way they had come through. "I would presume so. It's defiantly not of this world."

"That's because…it _is_ a demon." Death stated clearly, earning all of their attentions. "It must have escaped from the underworld but taking in its strength, it's probably a mid-class worldly-type." He sighed, standing back up and heading over to the spot where the creature had appeared from. He kneeled down, fingering the rocks and dirt while grabbing his weapons.

"And how would you know this? And what's this about class and worldly?" The white-haired woman asked, pausing in her healing, taking interest in the conversation.

"Back home, I live around demons so it's not uncommon to know this type of knowledge. They're quite nice…well, some are, not all. This one was more in for the fights and battles than randomly killing and finding its next meal." Death headed to the side, settling down beside the group. "About the worldly thing I was talking about. There are three main levels in Hell, each one different than the other but the higher up you go, the stronger the demons are and they can control a certain amount of space. The weakest is worldly then galaxy and finally universal. For worldly, well, we have better names for it but I'll stick with this for now, anyway, it's basically a single planet one. Take Sylvarant for example, all the people that dies here would go to this world's Hell and usually has the most people in it. That's where most of the evil is born and they are commonly seen on the surface but these ones are never very strong. At this stage, it has ten layers to consist that of the seven deadly sins, two for those that belong to numerous categories or none and one for the lords of that rule that section of the underworld."

He continued on, not allowing the others enough time to interrupt. "As for the galaxy level, the powers almost quadruple from the normal ones. I highly doubt that the strongest person on this planet could take care of one in a high-class. They're rarely seen but one does show up even ten thousand years, mostly the low-class. This area has three levels, one for the low-class, one for the middle, etc and also, the people there are split between good and evil. They are quite smart and _can_ think and _act_ like a normal person, some are highly intelligent and fight with suburb skills better than most humans." He took another breath before explaining the last part. "Then there's the Universal one, this is where the strongest demon, the king of them exists. The ones there are not people you want to fight with at _all_, they are _extremely_ powerful. But either way, you'll never see those people and the only way to get to that level is if you have a connection or are being lead. The demons in that rank are mostly honest and good-natured, it's actually a nice place, and I've been there a few times. Anyway, the entire underworld is run by the King, Drake. He's the ruler of everything down there. A demon lord is placed over each section, worldly, galaxy and with Drake ruling over the universal."

"That interesting, I've never heard of Hell being like that." Raine whispered, her eyes gleaming with interest. "Tell me more."

Death chuckled, standing up. "Sorry but I'm afraid that it's going to have to wait." He suddenly coughed, collapsing to the ground. Lloyd's eyes widened, instantly going to his side, lifting him up.

He twisted to Raine. "Professor!"

The elf ran to his side, casting a first-aid but nothing happened. The spell had no effect unlike the last one she had cast on her brother. A gasp escaped from her lips, shifting closer to get a better look, nothing was wrong. There was no bleeding but there were lingering signs that blood had been there.

Colette made a squeak, glancing over the body. "Prosser, what's wrong with him?"

"I-I don't know…" Raine muttered, watching Death throw up more blood to the side. "But we need to get him to a town immediately! Luckily for us, one isn't too far away."

"Move!" Kratos pushed everyone aside and lifted his son's older version up onto his feet but Death could hardly stand. The blood had stopped coming up his throat and he was starting to settle down but his eyes were weary and tired. He didn't even argue when the old man carried him in a bridal style, his face in the chest. "He's light…" Kratos muttered, glancing down at the now unconscious figure. "_Too_ light. He's far below normal standards."

Raine folded her arms. "He might be malnourished, that's the only reason I can think of. Anyway, right now, let's go and get him to a doctor."

Lloyd and Genis gave a worried yet all-knowing look at the other, already knowing what had happened to cause the thing. They cast guilty stares with only Kratos catching it.

* * *

Raine sighed, it had been a _long_ day, meeting an assassin twice, fighting a large demon skull monster then having to deal with Death's weird condition (the doctor has already examined him but found nothing wrong) and not only that, they were having difficultly in finding a boat that would allow them to get across the ocean. Yep, a very _very_ long day. Luckily, they managed to convince someone to give them a ride after watching a fight between this Matt fellow and a girl for a letter. No matter, they got what they needed. She sighed again, more heavily, glancing over to the unconscious look-alike in the bed. Everyone else was wandering the village, stocking up on supplies after the demon had exhausted it. The woman remained by Death's side just incase he started to throw-up blood again, sitting down on the bed. He was now sleeping peacefully, a lot better than before when he had been puking which still puzzled her even now. She had feared it might have been an internal injury but there were no bruising on the body around the stomach so that couldn't be it. Color was already returning to his pale face and now that she got a closer look, though he looked like Lloyd, there were some differences. Just like how Lloyd and Genis were able to pick them out, she could too. But even with all that, it was very possible that they could be twins even with the age difference.

She took a deep breath and wandered away, checking out the window to see if any of the group was coming back. None, there was only the fisherman and the people that wandered about the streets.

A light noise reached her ears, it's was the bed sheets shifting.

"Death?" Raine turned around, hoping to see the young-looking man awake and she did, he was sitting up, staring into space, out the window on the other side of her. He didn't seem to notice the other person in the room, faced away with something in his eyes that appeared like they were clouded over. She called out again. "Death?"

Slowly, he twisted to her and she gasped, taking a step back. His face was dark and the eyes were almost glowing bright red in the darkness. They sent shivered up her spine like they were one of the ones Kratos would send and she took a deep breath, thinking it might be her last. Death looked…evil, malicious, cruel, and heartless and any other word she could currently think of. She was scared; it was as if the being before her was really like his name, Death.

The man tilted his head forward, glancing down at his hands and brought them up to his face. A grunt came from in-between the fingers and pulled back. The expression had instantly changed, morphing back into the familiar one she had seen. "Hm?" He glanced towards Raine and blinked his eyes. "Professor? What's wrong?"

The elf laughed nervously, pushing all thoughts about before away. "N-Nothing. I see you're awake now."

Death didn't believe her. "Yeah, sorry for worrying you."

"No, its okay but could you tell me what happened?" Raine eased herself back into the present situation.

The man glanced away. "I…have a condition, it's only temporary but it causes me to become like this. Whenever I do things a little over my limit, my body starts deteriorating and then I begin…well, you know what happens. Either way, I heal very quickly so it doesn't take long for my body to piece itself back together, a little awkward when you think about it but that's probably the best way in explaining."

Raine hummed to herself, a finger up on her chin, deep in thought. "I see, that's quite a dangerous condition."

The black-clothed man smiled. "But its okay. I've gotten pretty good at taking care of myself. That last battle really took a toll on me and everyone else." Not mention that stab he took for Lloyd. "But don't worry; I'll get better along the way."

Raine nodded, taking this attitude easier than the previous one. "I would hope so." She sighed, letting her chest fall, her staff close by. "So will you tell me what happened at that battle?"

Death looked puzzled and confused. "Huh? What are you talking about?"

"You were wounded, it was obvious since you kicked Lloyd out of the way, but when I check you while you were resting, the wound was completely gone. It was as if it had never happened."

"…Damn and I was trying so hard to hide it too." He grumbled, leaning back down on the bed, slightly depressed that he had been found out. The Sages just had to be smart, didn't they? "…Will you keep it a secret? I can't exactly tell you right now, it wouldn't do any of us any good if you knew. I just need you to trust me. I promise I will tell you sooner or later and perhaps everyone else as well. But right now, I need to keep my secrets to myself just like you keep ones about your family's race."

Raine's eyes widened considerately then narrowed. "H-How did you find out?"

"I have my ways but let's keep it a secret, okay? You won't tell and neither will I, I hope this won't cause any bad blood between us." He smiled brightly and it unnerved Raine by the way he acted. He was defiantly _not_ like Lloyd, he hardly took anything serious or at least gave the impression of that. Not even now he didn't. Raine sighed; she was trapped and exhaled.

"Fine, okay but I _will_ find out one day."

The man just continued to beam. "Oh, you will but now isn't the time. Just don't hate me for it."

She would have asked about that but didn't, deciding to keep out of things for the mean time.

* * *

Death sighed, sitting up from the bed he had been sleeping on for the past six hours. He twisted his back, stretching and glanced over the silent room. It was late in the night and the only person in here was Kratos, breathing quietly. Death slid his feet over the side, letting his bare soles touch the ground and felt the cool wooden boards. His clothes were still on, even the scarf except for the shoes and weapons that were on a table, neatly organized. Standing up, he wandered to his stuff, grabbed it and went to a window, looking out to the purple-tinted town. He could hear the water riding up against the beach and took a deep breath of the salty air before putting everything on.

"Where do you think you're going?" A voice asked from the opposite side. Death didn't flinch; he had known that Kratos hadn't been asleep.

"Out. I need to walk around for a bit, I'll be back soon." He turned to the red head, giving a smirk and jumped out the window. He had a mission in mind to do and he had to do it fast or else. Running into the woods, he paused for a moment and rotated to face the inn, leaning onto the tree. Death coughed, squeezing his chest with his fingers, his face paling. "Damnit…not now."

He grinded his teeth together, willing _it_ back further and glanced at the inn, towards the window he had went through. 'Good, he's not going to follow me…' The black-clothed man wandered into the woods, heading to the Ossa Trail, all awhile sweating. 'I've held myself back for this long, a little longer won't make me lose control yet.' Death ran through the woods, eyes searching for something he hadn't had for a while. A voice in the back of his mind whispered hungrily and he smiled at it, continuing on. His breathes were deep and tired and came up to a campsite where a group of four were in the middle, one of them staying awake as the night watch. A bright flame burned in the middle, granting light among them. He licked his lips and almost wanted to run out into the field but hesitated. He grinned, perhaps a little of toying around wouldn't hurt, though, he'd like to finish this as quickly as possible. Death raised his hand, pointing at the fire with all five of his fingers and slowly curled them into his palm. The flame started to die down and the night watcher turned around, shifting forward. The man blinked his eyes, observing the light and tossed another piece of wood into the middle. It didn't work, the fire continued to go down as Death pulled his fingers closer and finally, the flicker vanished. The place was instantly covered in darkness but the person didn't seem too frightened and tried to build another fire. While that was happening, Death crept behind, pulling out a knife from his sleeve that was different than the last one he had done so. This one appeared like a regular dagger with the handle pitch-black with a cross drawn across it. Where he got that, he wasn't sure himself, he just wanted to get what he wanted and go.

Pulling the blade up, he stabbed the sharp point through the chest, hitting the heart for an instant death so the man couldn't wake up the others, and yanked it out. The body flopped to the ground, the blood splattering onto the floor, just missing him and his clothes. His crimson pools turned to the others in the area and sauntered towards the closest one without a single sound. The wind blew with his scarf flapping and he emerged dangerously in the darkness with the moon shining its pale radiance. Using that same dagger, he tore into the sleeping body, ripping the flesh apart before standing up and moving onto the next. He licked his lips, loving the smell that surrounded him, the scent of copper, and stabbed the next in the head with enough intensity that he heard a satisfying crack. The body jerked a bit and wobbled as the knife crushed through the skull. There was a squishy sound as it reached the brain and left the object there, indebted. He turned to the last one and began to laugh, waking the fourth and last member, who stared at the intruder.

The person yelled something at him before taking in the scene and glaring at Death with rage and question. The murderer didn't seem all that caring at this, taking out his swords, letting the ends glitter in the luminosity. He stepped forward with a sick grin, his boot splashing into the blood.

"Do you know how long it's been since I've been able to do something like this?" He whispered, not really expecting an answer, not that he wanted one. "So long, I haven't had any fun like this so _fucking_ long. I've been suppressing my bloodlust and you know, it's quite hard for long periods of time."

Death dashed forward, decapitating the last person, watching as the head flew off, twirling in mid-air before hitting the ground with a heavy flop. It rolled for a few seconds with the corpse collapsing backwards. He treaded forward and kneeled down, taking his gloves off, tossing them aside and rolled his sleeves. Another knife appeared in his hand except this one was a scalpel and stabbed into the body, tearing the chest cavity apart until a large pool of scarlet started forming in the middle. He dipped his hands into the sticky liquid, cupping it and brought the blood to his lips. His tongue licked the tip of the pool before sipping slowly and carefully, not wanting any of the juice on his clothes. Death closed his eyes, the pressure on his body weakened and he licked his lips when his hands pulled back. The man suddenly made a disgusted face, wiggling his nose.

"_I guess that blood is no good_."

Death narrowed his eyes and twisted to the side to see a large spider. It was black, blending in with the dirt with glowing green eyes. He snorted, turning back the puddle. "Got no choice in the matter. I need this to keep myself sane or at least from tearing everyone I come across apart."

He stood up, wandering over to the next corpse, hoping that this one would be better. The spider followed, its pinchers grabbing hold of the gloves, putting them on top of its body. "Is that so?"

"Yeah." Death tore through this one as well, waiting for the blood to collect. "I've done this for sooo long that I enjoy all of this. The cooper taste and scent, it excites me. I can't help it." He took a drink. "Damn, this one is as disgusting as the last one. Oh well, it at least helps me remain in control for the time being."

The spider twitched its forelegs. "That's because it's _human_ blood. Anyway, how are you? I've heard from the Queen that you've been placed under a powerful seal."

"Yeah and it just make matters worse for me. I've been holding in my lust that when I used that spell on the Sword Dancer, I allowed a part of myself to show up. Luckily, after coming here, I was able to get a good supply of blood down to keep me from loosing control. Wouldn't want to kill myself and Genis in the beginning? But you know what? Before Sheena appeared, I couldn't help but feel like I wanting to tear out Lloyd's throat. I could tell he had some good blood along with his father. Funny, isn't it?"

"If you think so." The spider watched as Death went to the next body, doing the same thing as before. The man wiggled his nose again, still unable to find one that was tasty enough and finally moved to the last one. He tore the chest apart, this time spraying red across the ground. He could feel the presence of monsters getting closer for the flesh and he didn't bother with it, allowing them to come. The spider crawled nearer, still carrying the gloves. "Now don't make too much of a mess on your clothes. I can't get you an extra pair."

"I know." Death licked his lips, glancing down at his scarlet hands. He slowly sliced the neck across still speaking with the spider. "I can't help it though. I've always been covered in blood and now to have to clean myself of it is a little odd. I guess I was also lucky that it had been raining that day when they found me." He stood up, leaving the blade there and headed into the woods to find a small stream to wash the evidence away. He couldn't return with Kratos there, waiting and with him covered in blood. The spider followed along. "I guess if you're here talking to me, that means _she's_ here too."

"Yes, the Lady will meet you later. She's busy right now."

"I understand." Death glanced one last time at the destruction he had caused before going back to his present matter. "I wonder how long this will last me for. Hopefully for a while, I wouldn't want to kill anyone in my group, now would I?" He grinned, laughing into the darkness and vanished.

* * *

"Professor, are you okay?" The black-clothed man asked, reaching out to the quivering woman to the side. It was obvious that she was keeping as far away as possible from the water. They had gotten onto the boat that belonged to Matt today after giving another day from Death to recover, not that he needed it. He neared the poor half-elf, knowing that it was obvious that she had a phobia of water. It was easy to see by the way she squirmed and paled at the blue sighting. Kratos was at one side, teaching Lloyd some more on swordsmanship, taking up the waiting time of the ride since the younger version had gotten bored. Colette and Genis were off to one side, observing the fishes, watching for the colorful ones. Noishe was here too, having settled in the downstairs of the boat. It had been hard to get him on and Matt wasn't exactly happy about the extra weight, willing to kick the beast off if Kratos, Lloyd and himself hadn't fought for Noishe. Death raised an eyebrow at Raine's pathetic state. "Professor? You okay?"

"I-I'm fine! Of course I am!" She cried out, trying to appear normal. Death didn't believe it for one second. "What about you? Do you feel any better?"

"Yeah, after some rest, I'm okay." He neared the woman, sitting down beside her. He leaned against the wooden boards, glancing up at the sky. It wasn't bad but the boat was horribly made, almost amateurishly. It was built out of all wood, the ones back at home were made of steel, more powerful than the ones here, oh well, times here are different. Maybe later on, it'll get better…no wait, four thousand years later, they'll still be like this, ugh…

A whimper came from the woman.

He finally sighed, twisting himself around and reached up to her face. "Professor, I'm going to try something, okay?" She didn't answer but he continued, placing his hands over her ears. Raine glanced up instantly, blinking her eyes, confused at the action.

"Death, what are you doing?"

"Just be quiet and listen to the sounds, it'll calm you."

Raine did as she was told and heard the heartbeats and sounds of thunder from inside. It was like a volcano was erupting continuously, the magma bubbling and she relaxed into it, forgetting about the ocean. It was a comforting noise and she closed her eyes, leaning back. When he pulled away, she took a deep breath. "…Thanks."

Death smiled. "You're welcome."

"But where did you learn such a technique?"

"My father did that to me whenever I got into a panic; he was always there, waiting patiently. It made me so happy to be in his arms, him holding me. I would instantly calm down, no matter what had happened. I loved it and he wasn't even related to me." He whispered, retracting his legs back, holding them tightly. Raine looked at him in interest.

"You have a foster father as well?" She glanced to Lloyd, wondering if it was the same one, Dirk. 'No, that can't be or else they would be completely the same. That would explain why they are so unlike, they had a completely different setting and upbringing.' The woman blinked her eyes when Death stood up, casting a shadow over her and felt a smooth cloth wrap around her neck. It was his scarf.

"Here, can you hold this for me?" He tugged his collar up but not before Raine managing to get a good look at something. She spotted the dark scar and stared, watching the look-alike stroll away, not bothering to wait for an answer. Raine reached up, touching the silky material and rubbed it against her cheek, it was so _soft_. It had a scent on it, his scent, a mixture of many elements that made it unique but she couldn't quite place her finger on it.

"Ah! I'm going to fall!" A female voice cried out.

"Colette! Watch out! Ah!"

Two splashes came with Death rushing to the side of the boat. The Professor came over but couldn't get any closer to the railing, scared shitless of the water. Kratos and Lloyd raced, kneeling down, trying to spot the drowning two. Death cursed, able to hear the choking breathes of the two and took off his jacket and gear, jumping in. He instantly disappeared into the darkness of the water. Matt ran by, panicking from the screams, worrying that the three might ever come back up, taken by a monster or something. Neither of trio came up and Lloyd was about to follow in to help when Kratos held him back with a strong grip to the arm.

Lloyd fussed with the hold, glaring at his teacher. "What are you doing!? I've got to help!"

"But who's going to help you if you don't come up either?!" Kratos yelled, calmly watching and praying for their safety. He knew that Death and the two would come back, he just _knew_.

The surface broke, three figures appearing. Death was in the middle, using himself as support for Genis and Colette. He grasped the side of the boat, keeping himself up, the strong water current pulling down on them. Colette gazed up at Kratos and Lloyd, reaching out for help, Genis towards his sister.

"You two, go first!" Death ordered, releasing one arm to lift Colette, who was grabbed by Kratos, instantly yanked up onboard. He then pushed Genis towards Lloyd, who immediately seized the arm. He took a deep breath, coughing up water that had managed to get into his lungs. The pull of the waves and its strength covered him with liquid. His red eyes opened, staring into the darkness of the water and as he sank, everything got brighter. The sun's light reached his vision and the sea was open to him, the pressure of it on his body. His locks of hair flapped around, bubbles of air from below flew up. The air trapped in his lungs escaped from inside and the powerful tug and need for oxygen weakened him. But then the feeling left, he had no need for _life_; he was already _dead_…long ago and had never came back. Only when he was around his friends and family did he feel alive and breathing but they weren't here and he knew, he _knew_ that he was alone.

His eyes blinked in the salty water, the reflection of the others on the boat facing him. He could see their lips moving, calling out his name and smiled at their despair. The man chuckled at their expressions; they were nice and suddenly he felt as if he was swimming in blood, his aspect… Death, his identity and codename, but that was what he is and am. A being that would never fade from existence, he would always be there, watching and waiting to take an innocent into the next realm and he enjoyed every moment. The agony and pain that they went through, it thrilled him and to be able to taste and feel their blood on his mouth and fingers, it was _pleasurable_. Skulls danced around him, body parts and flesh sinking into the bloody abyss. Screams and laughter filled his ears and could see those that had been sent to hell, living eternal torture in the waters, gasping for the breath that would never come. He was twisted, he knew that everything he put out in front, his personality, was a fake but how could he show them his true self without making them fear him, think of him as a monster that would devour their souls at any second.

He continued to stare at their faces, a few of them ready to jump in but Kratos held them back. It had been a long time while since he had such beings care about him, aside from the ones at home. Now that he mentioned it, they would be sad if he allowed himself to fall into the pit of desolation, he could already see his Dad's face, _both_ of them and everyone that cared about him try to help. A smile appeared on his lips and he kicked his feet. The red water vanished in the bright and clear blue it had once been. Perhaps it was time to live again, to reach out to people…no, that couldn't happen yet, they had a long way to go before they could ever earn his trust and it was _never_ easily given. A fish swam by him, yes, he couldn't let it end here, he couldn't, even if he wanted too. Death pushed his body and resurfaced, flipping his head back. Air filled his empty lungs and closed his eyes, feeling the warmth of the sun on his form. A cold hand grasped him at the shoulder, dragging him up, landing heavily on the deck, lying down. Everything had gone back to normal or as normal things could get for him.

"Death?! Are you okay?!" A voice called out into his foggy mind and opened his pools, gazing at the half-elf woman. He grinned; it had been Raine who had saved him. The other two were fine, they had slipped in when Colette had tried to reach into the water to point at a fish and Genis, trying to catch a hold of the girl, fell in with her.

"Never better…" He still had his smart-ass remarks and turned to the two. "You both okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine. Sorry for worrying you." Colette apologized, pushing her wet bangs back.

Genis shaked his head, almost like a dog. "You know, you have the tendency to save us a lot."

"I hope it doesn't become a habit or a job." Death groaned, letting the hot rays dry him. "I don't know if I'll be able to survive at this rate."

"Good luck." Raine nodded softly. "Especially Lloyd and Genis, those two have a strong attraction for it."

The man could only groan tiredly.

* * *

Later on, I won't do many battles since they make the piece way too long, I'll make them short unless they're major ones like a boss or something. Also, I'll be posting up a piece based on this story for those that like yaoi. It's going to be a DeathXLloyd one and for those that don't like yaoi, don't worry, it'll have no effect on this fanfic at all.

Creed walks in. "You just wanted to use 'Interference' just to make more yaoi pairings and fanfics. Shame on you."

"Yeah, yeah."


	6. The Spider Queen

**Title: Interference **

**Author**: Metamorcy

**Rating**: M

**Disclaimer**: Do I have to keep repeating it? Is there any point now?

**Summary**: Weakened and sealed, a different yet older version of Lloyd is forced to travel with the chosen's group in order to regain his powers but he's keeping more things to himself then he's saying, a lot more.

**N/A**: I'm going to change a few things and skip over a few parts but those that have played the game will know what had happened

**

* * *

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Chapter 6:

**Spider Queen**

"So this is Palmacosta!" Lloyd jumped for joy as he stepped onto the planks that seemed to spread out across the area. The docks all had a boat on it with plenty of space for extras. People were running off and on the boats, either taking stuff out from below or putting things on. Everyone was moving around, no one standing still for too long and not too far away was where the town was located. The twin swordsmen could feel the wooden boards shift slightly at the waves and he wobbled a bit in his footing. Everyone had gotten off the boat while Max remained onboard, hanging over the railing to peer at the group. Raine, upon hitting the wood, had instantly run to the shore and when she planted her feet on the hard surface of safety did her personality switch back to the calm and collected one. Genis sighed at his sister's fear and Death couldn't help but chuckle in amusement. Lloyd glanced up to the blond-haired man with a hand on his face to cover his eyes from the blinding sun and waved with the other. "Thanks, Max. What are you going to do now?"

The man looked thoughtful. "I'll probably request an escort for a Palmacosta warship or something…well take care."

"Sorry for making you take us all the way out here. Be careful on your way back." Lloyd grinned while Colette, who was standing near the edged, waved.

"You too."

Death shook his head and started for land. His balance along with Kratos' was unaffected by the swaying of the boards and was able to walk as if nothing was wrong. Lloyd, Colette and Genis, however, had to hold onto each other but even though there were three of them, they still managed to fall over a few times. Sometimes taking Kratos or himself along with them, and if things got messy, all five of them. Raine stayed in the distance and refused to turn their way because of the water. Death sighed and looked around the area or market place as it appeared to be and took note of a few things. A large lighthouse was on the opposite side, no light on at the moment, but he could tell from this far away that it was vacant. Voices crowded his mind as they entered the center, so many people were wandering around that for a moment he thought he had lost himself from the group. As his red eyes turned to the side, he spotted the dark clothes of Kratos and the bright red ones of Lloyd's at a shop. He mentally sighed in relief.

"Where to?" Death asked as he went closer, wanting to see what was going on.

Lloyd twisted to him with a grin but Kratos was the one that answered. "To an inn I suppose. I think we're all a little tired after that ride."

"I see." The look-alike noticed that the Sages and Colette was just to the side, looking over some gels and ingredients for foods. He watched the three carefully before turning to a different direction.

A shiver ran up his spine.

His red eyes widened at the feeling and snapped his head up.

"D-Death?" A voice called out to him and it took him a second to realize that it was Lloyd. "Is something wrong?"

"No, its nothing." Death gave a smile, fake, but no one could tell the difference. His eyes darkened when Lloyd went back to Kratos. It had been a faint feeling but it was enough to concern him, he was being watched, being followed, and as went away, it was still with him. The man growled to himself, he'd have to search for the person…or creature _later_.

As everyone wandered around, it didn't take long for them to gather what they needed like Lloyd getting a new piece of armor by the request of Kratos, and a few other things. Death did notice an odd old woman in the seafood section, staring at them. He returned it with a glare but the woman didn't stop instead she continued. He waved it off after all. As they headed up the ramp to the next level, they passed a little dog that was on the side, wagging his tail, and Colette instantly named it Teddy, everyone just sweatdrop after that.

Death placed his hands into the pockets of his jacket and closed his eyes, hearing the soft sounds of the wind and ocean. A small breeze fell over his face and he could hear the group chattering beside him. He knew they went around a few corners, traveling until they recognized a sign that stood for the inn. They came to it but as they turned, he heard a startled yell and something shattering onto the ground. He opened his eyes to see the Chosen and another girl, this one with short blue hair, on the floor. A bottle next to them was smashed open, the glass of the container scattered along the ground with its pinkish looking liquid spilling out. Death shook his head, he should have known better than to let her go in the front, he should have even remembered this incident. However, his memories of this time here was still a little fuzzy, it was getting clearer by day, but it wasn't going fast enough for him.

The girl stood up the same time with Colette, who had help from Lloyd. The person turned to the blond in rage. "Oww! What did you do that for?!" She screeched in fury, stomping her foot on the ground.

"Oh, I'm sorry." The Chosen apologized instantly by habit.

However the girl didn't care for that. When she took a look at the potion that had fallen to the ground, she brought a hand up to her lips. "Ahh! The Palma Potion that we just received!"

The guy next to her, who Death couldn't help but sneer at when he spoke with such a tone of voice, stepped forward and narrowed his eyes. He had red hair that was spiked up towards the air and wore armor. It wasn't hard to tell that he was furious. "Hey, lady, that was a valuable potion! How are you planning on making up for this?" Kratos instinctively placed his hand on his sword in defense while Lloyd clenched his fist.

Colette seemed unaffected and clapped her hands together. "I'll buy a replacement potion right away!"

"…Replacement potion?!" His face turned red and took another step forward and screamed. "Do you think that'll ease my anger?"

Lloyd had enough. "Oh, come on, now you just sound like an idiot."

"What-did-you-say?! Do you know who we are?!"

"And I should care because?..." Lloyd shrugged his shoulders, not looking scared at the threat. Death had to congratulate him in keeping his cool but his eyes couldn't help but catch a large book that was hiding in their pack that was slightly obvious to the eye. He turned to Kratos who noticed it as well, though he was hiding that fact that he did behind his emotionless mask. Death knew he was the only one that could act at the moment but not at this very second. He had to wait until the right time to attack and steal it back.

The girl with short blond hair in their little group of four come forward, wearing witch clothes all blue in color. "Stop. I'd like to leave here as soon as we can. Don't start any unnecessary trouble."

The other girl nodded, turning to her group, trying to calm the red head's anger. "I agree, lets just have them replace the potion."

This didn't make the man happy but he complied. "Bah. You got off lucky this time, kid. Hurry up and go buy that potion."

Everyone in the group wanted nothing more than to kill that pompous bastard, even Death was getting tempted by the idea. He wanted to decapitate the idiot with a quick swing of his sword, however, he kept that urge inside. But Colette just agreed to the brut, ignoring his rude behavior with a smile and decided to go and get the potion by herself. Lloyd gaped and groaned. "There's no need to bother Colette! We'll help you!"

"No, I ran into them so I have to pay for it…"

"Now, now Colette." Death started, yanking the girl back so they could leave. "We all need to pitch in since we made the situation worse than it already was. Lloyd made that red-haired guy start to scream-"

"No, I didn't!"

"-and Kratos made a threatening move on their lives behind your back." This earned him a glare from the red head beside him since he was lying through his teeth. It was one thing he was good at. "So we really all should help pay for the potion. By, I don't know, using our fund."

Colette being Colette agreed instantly with a smile on her face. "Oh, I get it! Okay!"

'No, she doesn't!' Everyone else screamed in their minds and turned to Death in question. He shoved Colette forward to get her out of the way and leaned over to them to explain.

"Look we're all going to have to use the funds to pay the thing off anyway. It's an expensive potion. I saw the sign for it. And I doubt getting Colette to work or do anything will actually benefit us. She's more likely to cost us then earn money instead." Death sighed. "Not only will we have to pay for Colette's strange tripping but for the potion as well."

"But why did you have to lie?" Genis questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Would she have let us help if she thought this was all her fault? You all should know the answer to that one."

It didn't take long before everyone agreed but as they headed off to a shop, Death paused for a moment. This caught everyone's attention and they turned to him in question. The look-alike blinked and looked out to the sea. He had caught the staring again and he could still sense it leaving faintly. "Hey, I'm going to head back to the market for a little while. I'll meet up with you guys at the inn. Just tell the front desk for me."

"Huh? Wait a minute!" Genis called out. "Aren't you going to come with us!?"

"I'll be right back, it's too late right now to go anywhere else and many places are starting to close. You better hurry and get that potion and give it to them. I need to see something in the mean time. Anyway, you guys have most of my money so no worries!" Death started away, not bothering in listening to the rest of them and waved his arm. As he went, he could feel Kratos' glare on his back until he disappeared behind the building with a grin.

His feet knew the way there and he stepped down the ramp once more but not before passing the group of four on his way. He didn't say anything and snuck past them with ease, he wasn't searching for a conflict especially out in public. After that, Death sighed in boredom. He had lost the target and he glanced around the area he was currently in for any sign or sensation of the being that had been watching him. He wandered half-heartedly and peered at the items without any interest. The look-alike went to one of the carts, dodging people and groups alike, and seemed to blend into his surroundings with ease. It was until a set of objects caught his attention. His red eyes peered at the knifes that were in the back of the row and went closer, reaching out to touch them.

The merchant finally noticed that he had a customer, and possible buyer, came around with a wide grin on his face. "Well, did something catch yours eyes, sir?"

Death blinked, leaning up with one of the throwing knifes in his fingers. He ignored the merchant temporally, holding the blade. He flipped it around in his hands before slamming it down onto the cart.

The seller wasn't happy about that and stared at the dent. "Hey, are you trying to pick a fight?!"

A few people surrounding the area stopped to watch, curious and perhaps nosy. Death shook his head and looked up. "No, I'm not. I was just checking the durability of these. The metal is weak. It hardly made a large or deep dent against the wood. It's not ever sharp enough. A knife regardless of how small or big should be able to cut through things like butter, not stand still. Throwing knifes need to have a sharp tip when piercing someone." Death lifted the blade back up and fingered it in-between his fingers. "The grip is horrible, you can sell this to those that don't know much about knifes but you can't fool me." Death tossed the thing back and moved on, not caring about the startled expression of the merchant. He had partly lied to his little group about his money. Sure they had most of it but he had gotten some more over time. He was a little bit of a thief, not that he would tell anyone. And pick-pocketing just happened to be his specialty. The people surrounding the area wandered off into the distance. A couple of them decided to follow him, wondering where he was going to next.

Death ended up stopping at the next cart and lifted up a throwing knife. He twirled it slightly and with ease. "Not bad, this is quite nice. How much?"

"500 gald for the whole set." The dealer stated, watching his store materials carefully. There were always those with sticky fingers and he didn't want anything stolen from him.

The look-alike muttered a few things under his breath. "I see, I'll take it." He took out the money and handed it over, retrieving the knifes in return. The whole set of six went into his fingers and up his sleeves, the box not included. He returned that part to the owner and disappeared into the crowd. His red eyes glanced around the area, trying to see if he could spot anyone familiar but alas, he didn't. Everyone here was all mashed up together, bumping bodies at each other. Death wandered further, bored again and could feel the mass of the knife in his sleeves but it wasn't weighting him down. He glanced up at the sun and grumbled, not liking the light that was shining down on him. The scent of ocean water was okay to his nose but he wasn't used to its strong smell and it started to annoy him after a while. It was too blue, too brilliant and he hated that brightness. Death grumbled louder, heading into an alley so to be comforted by the darkness.

He flipped down on one of the scattered crates, watching as people go by. He leaned against the hard yet cool wall, hiding himself in darkness, far away from the lights. His blood red eyes examined the people and in it emerged a little girl, probably seven or eight. She glanced around as if searching for something then came upon him with her large eyes. A smile broke out on her face and ran up to him. He stared in wonder, unmoving.

"Hey, mister, what are you dong here? Are you okay?" The girl asked, grinning with sunlight shining on her back. Death sighed heavily, straightening himself up.

"I'm fine, I just need to get into some shade. You, on the other hand, should head on home. You're parents are worried." The older man stated, examining the kid over.

"I will after I see something." The child jumped.

Death shook his head. "I understand but I really believe that you should go home and look at it later, you'll regret it if you don't."

"Don't worry, mister. I'll be fine. Bye!" And with that she left, disappearing into the mess of people. Colors of different kinds were blended collectively, people were chattering endlessly with voices of all kinds growing, and he just leaned back to the side. His eyes closed and he listened to the soft sounds of the sea brushing against the sandy surface.

"That poor girl, you tried to warn her but she didn't listen." A voice called out from the darkness behind. Death didn't move, taking another long breath. A woman appeared, forming from the shadows itself with long black hair flowing down to the back of her knees. Her crimson eyes glowed dangerously and she licked her rosy lips, gliding her body forward as if floating. Stray bangs tickled across her forehead with one side of the pale face covered in cracks that appeared to be spider webs. Her dress was a bit showy, the top hanging low enough to show about half of her large breasts. The sleeves were extremely baggy and when she extended them out, designs of dark red webs were engraved into them. Her fingernail, painted black, slid across Death's shoulder's seductively. Spiders crawled over his body from that one contact but they remained moving on her body, in her hair and clothes, but it didn't spook the other one bit. "Tried to keep her from her fate but she didn't listen. That's too bad."

Death pulled away, turning to the woman. "Mur, why are you here?"

"Looking for you, of course." She smiled, showing off her pure white teeth. "It was easy too, my spiders were able to track you down and tell me. Don't worry, I haven't told anyone else yet but I'm pretty sure that _they_ already do."

"Of course, they always know."

"Though, I find it a bit odd for you traveling with these sort of people. They're not very smart, now are they? Can't even tell lies from the truth but I guess you're an expert in that now." Mur giggled, bringing her hands up. "Telling the truth from both lives, both only temporary, and never saying much about the one right now, the present you. Not only that, you know the future of this one just like that of the little girl's."

"This is coming from the Spider Queen that devours people after tricking them and that had played the role of the mysterious creepy one that fools everyone in many worlds." Death retorted, not really bothering in swatting any spiders that were crawling up his neck, some were small, others were a bit larger like they could fit into the palm of his hand. "Plus, you really need to stop changing your clothes, can't you just stick to one dress or outfit?"

"Ah, come on Lloyd, I'm just having some fun. I've lived longer than you have, much longer then this planet and galaxy. I don't really want to act my age. As they say, new excitement each day."

"Who's they? Your previous meal?" Death sneered, shaking his head and reached up to pat a spider. "Anyway, how is everything back home? Did my disappearance do anything drastic?"

The Spider Queen folded her arms and sat down on the crate next to Death. Her slim body was so thin that the hair seemed to overlap her. "Not really since you've been known to disappear for months. Only Luc and Sync noticed it the most but they know that you're safe and can take care of yourself. They're the ones that are the least worried."

"I see, they have so much faith in me. And my dad?"

"He hadn't noticed it, neither has your god-father. Of course, that can't be said for your _other_ father. He's already noticed it long before anyone else had and is probably keeping a close watch on you from afar. It's quite nice to have such a parent willing to go so far to help his child even if they're not related by blood." Mur flicked her hair behind her shoulders and folded her legs. "I don't even remember what my parents were like or if I had any."

Death smiled lightly, glancing up into the sky. He could see the large puffy clouds shattered along the great blue, imaging his father watching down on him. He could just see it. At least, the man was giving him privacy. He had another foster father long ago. Dirk, was his name, but he could no longer see him. The dwarf should be dead by now as well as all his friends from his previous world. It had been a long time. Everyone should have faded out by now, Raine and Genis were perhaps the only ones still alive since they're half-elves but he wasn't going to hold any hope onto that. Maybe when this was all done, he would go back and at least visit their graves. Death smiled sadly.

Mur smiled. "Lloyd, how much longer do you think you can lie to them, knowing full well what's going to happen in the future. Like how Kratos is going to betray all of you?"

"I'm not going to say anything related to it. I'll use my second life to keep things hidden. That way no one will know my identity unless someone comes forth and tells but before that happens, I'll have killed that person." Death stood up, dusting himself off and straightened his scarf. The spiders that were crawling on him ran off, heading back into Mur's dress, blending in with the color. "I'm going to head back to them, I think I've been gone long enough. See you later, Mur." He headed into the crowd, stepping back into the light. But then he remembered something. He turned back to the woman who was still standing in the darkness. "I need you to do something for me. Do you remember a little group that forced us to pay for their potion? I know you were watching me the entire time. You were that presence that I kept sensing."

"Of course, _Darling_."

"Well, with them, they have a book. Could you do me a favor and get it back?" Death had a dark grin on his lips. "You can scare them anyway you like."

Mur giggled. "Of course. I'd love to." She took a step backwards and disappeared, her eyes glowing before that too had to succumb to the darkness. But the grin never left the place and he could still hear her cruel laughter and the crawling of her spiders.

His hands were in his pockets, strolling past a store where a shout was suddenly called out. He glanced to the side and paused for a moment with everyone else. In the middle of the scene was the same little girl that had talked to him. She was lying on the ground, smashed underneath a large sign with her body all mangled up. Blood was spreading out from her corpse with her eyes wide open, staring into the distance. People crowded around her, whispering things and he knew that if the people weren't careful enough in removing the body, she would split. He shook his head. 'She didn't listen, stupid girl.'

He walked away, unaffected by the horror as his black scarf flapped behind, passing people that wanted to see what had happened. All eyes were turned to the group and he quickly went by without stopping until he reached the place where everyone was staying at. He momentarily looked at it, eyeing the building and could sense the group inside in one room. Death titled his head as he felt the wind blew and sighed, stepping towards the building.

Death opened the door to the inn and glanced around the opening area. The front was empty save for the receptionist that was supposed to be watching the door. She made a little smile and waved before glancing back down at her own book. He made no response and climbed up the stairs to the room and opened the one he was supposed to enter. He didn't bother asking the directions nor knock on the door. He just…slipped in.

"Hey, Kratos, do you know where Governor-General Dorr's place is?" Raine asked, looking over the map of the city.

"It should be in the dead center of the town, right next to the church there and the academy, if I remember correctly."

"Are we going to be able to stop at the academy? I want to look at the school there." Genis' voice cut in, sounding excited. Death didn't bother answering and went towards his bed in the distance, though he wasn't sure if it was really his (though there's no stuff on it), he just wanted to rest his feet. No one but Kratos noticed his entry and nodded to him. The look-alike didn't bother returning it and flopped down on the bed, laying down, snuggling into the pillow and sheets. He let out a contented sigh and turned to face the group of four that had gathered into this one room.

"Why not?" Colette's voice spoke up. "I think it'll be a lot of fun."

"Do I have to go, Professor?" Lloyd moaned, his shoulders falling at the thought of having to study. His face had a whipped dog look while Genis seemed a little depressed that his best friend didn't want to go with him. Raine, however, wouldn't hear of it.

"Lloyd, you're going and that's final. It'll be good for you." She had her staff in her hand and it seemed potentially dangerous to Lloyd's vision. He backed up slightly afraid that it would be used to cause him pain. He shuttered under her vision and kept quiet about the whole thing quickly, he didn't want to get killed yet. Lloyd groaned and looked around the room before noticing Death.

"Huh? When did you arrive?" Lloyd crawled closer and peered into Death's red eyes. "Weren't you out taking a walk a little while ago?"

Everyone but Kratos turned to the other man in the back. "Was asleep you know…" Death grumbled but lifted himself off the comfy pillow to look at everyone. "I came back while you were talking, I didn't bother in notifying you. There was no need."

"Then you were listening. Are you coming too? The school I mean."

Death blinked and looked at Raine, who had a fierce look in her eyes. "Yeah, have no choice. But it shouldn't be all that bad, right?"

Lloyd grumbled. He couldn't get out of it now since everyone had agreed to go. He sighed depressingly. "Ah man, now I can't get out."

"I don't think you ever could."

Lloyd groaned louder.

* * *

The death of that little girl caused a uproar among the citizens of the town. They cried out to the Chosen of Regeneration and Colette had to be kept in the dark since everyone knew that she would instantly rush out to help the family. Death could only watch in amusement, his lips twitching. He wanted to bring them up into a curl yet resisted or tried to resist. The look on his face couldn't be anymore than a frown but inside he was grinning.

* * *

In the morning, the group got up early to head towards the church. They wanted to pray for this city and offer their blessings. Death grumbled as he rubbed his eyes tiredly, he had hardly gotten any sleep last night as usual. He scratched the back of his head and continued to walk down the pathway the others were going. In the plaza, they could see three people, two of them kids. Death zoned out at what they were talking about but he could see the tall man holding what seemed to be his daughter's hand. The child was saying something, almost in tears, but the father and daughter calmed him down. He ignored it some more and looked around the area, watching the ocean move and glitter with the sun above them, heating up the top layer of the water. There was a better view of it when he got onto the bridge and the group couldn't help but overhear the conversation.

"Who was that?" Lloyd asked, snapping Death out of his dream.

An old man who happened to be close by twisted to him with his cane in his hand. "He's Governor-General Dorr. He's recruiting soldiers and resisting the Desians. He's a wonderful man."

The woman beside him, who appeared to be his daughter or a fat version of his granddaughter, spoke next. "After losing his wife to an illness, he's raised his daughter Kilia all by himself…"

"As long as Governor-General Dorr is here, we won't submit to the Desians. Even if we're taken off to the ranch. Dorr with come and save us. We believe in him."

Colette smiled. "Wow! The people of this city are all so strong!"

Lloyd nodded. "That Dorr person must be a great man." He pumped his fist into the air, suddenly all full of energy even though everyone had to drag him out of bed. Death had to help in that, he had been awake before they noticed and literally pulled the teen onto the floor.

Raine gathered the group together for a huddle, trying to get their next destination clear. "Alright, let's head to the church first then to the academy for Genis. We should get some information about the next seal there and hopefully our next destination." No one had any arguments on that plan, that is if Lloyd's voice of disapproval was ignored and not taken in. Death sighed in pity for his younger version and rubbed the top of his head affectionately, pulling him along. Lloyd could only blush at the touch, his voice silenced and followed along like a lost puppy. Kratos noticed this and couldn't help but make a small smile. If he didn't any better, he would be saying that both were his sons and that they looked so cute side by side like that. Death smiled in return to Lloyd's, shaking his head as they approached the doors. He suddenly stopped and stared at them before stepping back.

"I'm going to stay out here. I don't believe in your religion so I think its best if I remain out here." The look-alike went to the side and sat down on the stairs, having his back face the group. "Its better this way, trust me."

Colette and Raine looked a little hesitate in going in without Death but then Kratos repeated close to the same thing. He went to the side and leaned against the pillars, folding his arms. Lloyd looked between the two people he looked up to and twisted to his remaining friends. "Why don't you guys go ahead? We'll stay outside and wait. Plus, Kratos and I can get some training done, it'll be better this way." He gave his infamous grin that could make any situation better and gave a thumbs-up. Death watched as the Sages and the Chosen, the only ones that _really_ believed in Martal, enter the church. When the doors opened, he heard mutters of voices and singing inside. He just hoped that Colette wouldn't find out about the girl…

Lloyd sat down on the stairs beside him and poked him at the side, getting his attention. "Hey, Death, what religion do you believe in?"

"Me?" The look-alike tilted his head. "Nothing really…I don't believe in anything."

"How come? I have my Dwarven vows to go by."

"I just don't. I'm more of a person to destroy religions then to follow them."

This suddenly confused Lloyd, who tilted his head. "Huh? What?" Death smirked and shoved Lloyd to the side, forcing him to sit by Kratos.

"Now, go play with Kratos. I'll keep watch of the others. No need to worry." Death waved his hands, shooing the two swordsmen away. When the two didn't respond, he sighed and knew he was going to take some drastic measures to get them to leave him alone. His eyes had a dark gilt in them and he instantly reached for his guns and aimed them at the two. Their eyes widened at the sudden attack, Kratos reacting the fastest, reaching for his sword. Lloyd wasn't as fast and stumbled a little with his feet. Death smirked and fired.

The bullets barely missed them since he was half-heartedly aiming and fired another round. Lloyd merely tried to dodge them, running around until he got into a safe spot. Kratos deflected a couple but he still had to jump around the others.

"W-What the hell, Death?!" Lloyd cried out, hiding behind a wall from the raining bullets. "What are you doing?"

"Hmm? Trying to get you to learn how to dodge properly." Death had a cruel smile on his lips and continued to fire. Kratos ran towards the wall that protected his son, using it as cover and glanced momentarily to see Death only to duck again. Suddenly, he stopped.

The two cautiously looked over the bricks and saw that Death had put his guns away and was walking back to the church as if nothing had happened. He slumped on the stairs, leaning over to rest his head on the pillar, looking like he was going to fall asleep.

"Now you two stay over there and play around. I'll be here." Death called out, watching the two with a stern eye. He folded his arms and slowly drifted off while keeping himself on full alert, just incase the family wanted to get some _revenge_ on him. He kept his fingers on the gun handle and he closed his eyes, however, he was far from sleep. His voice came in a whisper. "Did you find them?"

"Yes…" Behind the pillar was a dark shadow with long fingers creeping out. They wrapped around his side but he didn't move. His eyes opened by a little slit and looked ahead.

"Well? Did they still have it on them?"

"Yep, they hid it in their bags in a piece of cloth." Mur giggled, wiggling around so she could smell the man's rich scent, the mixture of cinnamon, chocolate and blood. "I haven't taken it yet since they're always around it."

Death growled. "I thought I told you to scare them, perhaps injure them a bit. I don't really care for what you do to get it but I want that book. I refuse to meet that coney old man and have to deal with him again."

Mur sighed and kissed the back of his neck but he didn't care much for it. "Alright, Darling Lloyd, I shall. I'll give it to you when you arrive at Hakonesia Peak."

"Also, please don't do that again. I don't care much for it but Luc and Sync won't be happy if they catch you." Death smirked, opening his eyes a little more but he was staring at the ground. "And my father may come after you, both of them."

"Alright, alright, I'm going. Well then, I'll see you later." The woman gave one last smile before vanishing and Death could only sigh at the quiet he had gotten in return. He remained where he was at and closed his eyes fully.

* * *

After the so called _pleasant_ visit with Governor-General Dorr, everyone realized that the book had been stolen by the group yesterday. Raine grumbled to herself, wanting to look and probably study the thing and cursed out to that group. Death sighed, he knew that this was gong to happen and Kratos wished that there had been an opportunity to steal it back without getting caught. So in the end, everyone, except for Lloyd, decided to visit the school in the mean time. Genis grew real excited as they got closer and had an extra bounce in his footsteps while Raine was already looking over the building. Death didn't really want to go in but he'd rather do so then become Raine's next target for anything.

"This place is so small…" Death whispered to himself, not wanting to catch anyone's attention. He saw some people hanging some white sheets to the side and noticed a door that went to a restaurant. Who ever heard of a school and a restaurant together? Well, he does now.

Lloyd opened the door to the building, heading in first before turning to the group. Kratos was last, grunting along and Death couldn't help but express his laziness by moving to the side to lean against the wall. Lloyd stalked over, grumbling, and poked his older version at the side. "Hey, don't fall asleep."

"I'm not going to…no matter how tempting it is." Death yawned, stretching his tired body until he heard a satisfying crack.

Lloyd puffed his cheeks and dragged the other closer, grumbling some more. But then there was a flash of concern. "Hey, do you feel better? You know…" His eyes trailed to where the cut had been at.

"Yeah…" The look-alike came back. "I'm already healed up, no worries."

The twin swordsmen nodded his head.

Colette took this time to speak to the little mage with a smile. "Hey, Genis, you were supposed to go to this school, right?"

Lloyd paused in his worries to listen in but he kept Death close by with a firm grip. Kratos couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at this, wasn't the oldest supposed to take care of the youngest? He was finding Death's sudden switch in personalities a little odd. Genis rubbed the back of his head, not liking the attention on him. A couple of students were in the hallway, passing by, probably trying to get to class on time but a few turned to him.

"Ah…yeah…I was given a recommendation…"

"Yes, he had such good grades that the school found him and invited him here." Raine continued for him, seeing as her younger brother wasn't willing to give out the total truth.

However, this add-in seemed to draw more of the students in the hallway. A young man, a book-worm obviously, by the way he dressed and acted as he pushed his glasses up his face, turned to Genis. There was a disbelieving scold on it. "You? A child this small was recommended for the elite Palmacosta Academy?"

Another one, this one with brown hair, the friend, sneered next. He tilted his head to the side and laughed at half-elf. "He's bluffing. It took me six tries to pass the entire examination."

Death snorted. "That's not something you want to admit to the world you know. And you know what? That's just plain sad to take six tries."

"At least I'm in here, that's all it matters to me. You couldn't get in here even if you tried!" The brown-haired student laughed harder.

"What?! Don't make fun of him! He's better than all of you! And so is Genis, he can even say his multiplication table." Lloyd yelled. Everyone else couldn't help but face palm at that remark and Death instantly yanked the teen closer to him. He tightened his grip on Lloyd's arm, warning him not to say anything else that was stupid.

"Wh…What kind of low example is that?!" Genis cried, feeling embarrassed and had a look of shock on his expression. He turned to Lloyd looking furious, his white hair scattering.

"Well, its high level for Lloyd…" Raine couldn't help but remark in the background. Death could only sigh, knowing that it was true.

The brown-haired one couldn't help but find this whole argument interesting. He grinned in amusement. "They say birds of a feather flock together." He pointed to Genis, almost touching the face. "I'm sure that this runt is on the same level."

"Wh…What?!" Lloyd snapped and ran forward after breaking out of Death's grasp, slapping the hand away. His eyes burned with rage. "You're nothing compared to Genis!"

"…Interesting. Will you challenge me, then?" The blond one asked, looking quite smug like he had already envisioned his victory.

Lloyd, however, didn't like this and nudged his best friend forward. "You'll do it, right?"

"That's easy for you to say!" Genis yelled, furious that he wasn't able to make any decisions for himself and puffed his cheeks. In the end, he reluctantly accepted, nodding his head in the student's direction. The teens in the hallway whispered to each other, spreading the word that there was going to be a competition.

"You should know that I'm the highest ranked student at this academy. You're gonna regret it later."

"I'll prepare the questions. When you're ready, come to the classroom in the back on the second level. We'll all be waiting for you there. This way we'll show you just how tiny you are! And don't you dare try to get out of this!" The brown-haired student pointed again and it was getting on everyone's nerves. Death couldn't help but notice that no one was saying anything against this strange predicament, much less the friend of the enemy, to allow them to make the questions. Were they really this dumb?

All eyes were on Genis, who was starting to panic mentally. "I haven't been studying lately, so…" He looked nervous but there was no way he was going to back out now, not after agreeing to that stupid test.

Raine nodded her head. "Yes, let's do a little intense training." Lloyd glimpsed at that, and gulped quietly. His face paled at the thought of having to study, he really didn't want to.

Death followed along, quietly listening to the kids around him. His hearing was strong enough to hear a few teens in the back, talking about taking some medicine but what it appeared to be _helpful_ was that he was sharing the stuff with his fellow friends. There were also the girls talking about the hottest boys in the school but he knew that a few of them was looking at his and Kratos' way. As their group came closer to the stairs, one girl shoved the females of the group aside and nudged herself in front of Kratos. "Um…what's your name?"

She looked a little shy since she was squirming her feet and looked at the floor only glancing up when he thought he was going to answer. Death snickered to the side, finding this amusing since Kratos was beginning to look pale. Lloyd and Colette tilted his head, not exactly getting on what was going on while the Sages could only gaped in shock. Kratos didn't answer, staring, almost to the point of glaring but the girl didn't get the message. "…That's none of your business."

The girl blinked then swooned. "You're so cool!"

Death and Kratos both swore they could see hearts in the girl's words. Really…

Kratos tried to push the girl, who was coming uncomfortably closer, away. "I need to go now…"

However, the teen had other ideas, she shrieked. "Ah! He's touching me!" She wrapped her arms around her body and blushed. This action made Kratos become lost on what to do. Another girl came forward grabbing Kratos' hand, it looked like she wanted to hold him but Kratos snapped it back, folding his arms. "You're so handsome! So dark and gloomy!"

The male students in the back couldn't help but shoot death glares at the mercenary. Death continued to laugh, not out loud, but it was to show his amusement to this whole ordeal. That was until he felt a tug on his sleeve. He turned to see another girl, looking up at him with interest. He cursed his luck. "Hey, what's your name?"

"It's Death." He didn't smile and kept a blank face.

"Such a dark name…You look handsome! I bet you'll be a real killer underneath all that clothes." The girl flirted, letting her finger rub up his arm. Death twitched but kept his face up and yanked the girl away. He stepped back, almost hitting Kratos but as the girls got closer, and when they touched, the two men glanced at each other and sighed depressingly. Death caught sight of the others. He grinned suddenly having an idea.

"Hey, why don't you attack my brother over there? Remember if I look like this, what will happen when _he_ grows up?" The group paused for a moment. Only the ones in his group seemed to think, muttering to themselves before turning to Lloyd then to him. Half of them decided split and run after the twin swordsmen, who in turn, ran for his life by going upstairs to try and get away. Lloyd let out a shrieked and his boots clattered against the wood. Death laughed even though the girls around him were getting closer. "Hey, Kratos, we should probably get out of this mess soon."

"Have you thought of a way out?"

Death thought for a second that there was a slight tone of fear in Kratos' voice. "Maybe…"

Kratos turned to him in confusion.

"It can go both ways but are you willing to take the risk?" He didn't need to get an answer since he didn't want one and turned to the girls. "Hey, who do you think is better? Me? Or Kratos, here?"

Suddenly, the fighting for the men stopped. The girls turned to each other. "I think Kratos is cooler."

"No, Death is! He has such a wonderful face!"

"No, Kratos is! His cold attitude makes him so attractive!"

"You just like him for his baggage! The dark gloomy I-cut-myself type! Death is cheery instead! I bet he could light the sun with that smile!"

"I bet that Kratos could put out that sun with a swish of his sword!"

"I bet that Death could take your Kratos out with as swift kick in his head. He'll beat Kratos hands down."

"Kratos-"

"They're gone!" A girl suddenly screamed, sounding like she was crying. Multiple shouts came soon after then the rushing of feet, everyone splitting off to try and to find their crushes. Death and Kratos looked at each other then below where they could see the girls and slowly went towards the stairs from the ceiling. They were using the wood to get around and jumped down when the coast was clear.

No one said a thing.

"…Well that was scary." Death chuckled, stepping forward, heading up the stairs. "At least they aren't as bad as the ones at home." Kratos was right behind but he refused to say anything on the subject and found Raine waiting for them with the classroom door open. It was a spare classroom so that Genis could study quietly or as quietly as possible seeing as the girls of the school was making so much noise. Lloyd was inside breathing fast, his shoulders shaking and with his head on the table. Colette looked confused as to what had happened and was silently studying one of the many books in the room. Kratos dragged himself to the back and sat down, taking this time to rest up since his heart was still pounding while Death just sat to the side, looking out the window in boredom.

No one wanted to speak about the whole ordeal, not even Genis. Everyone kept quiet and studied or somewhat studied if taking in Lloyd's snoring in the background as studying. Soon it was time for the test and everyone left to head on over to the appointed room. Kratos, Lloyd and Death kept themselves away from the wandering eyes, almost to the point of hiding themselves, and couldn't help but sigh in relief when they arrived at the room still knowing that there were prying eyes in the background. Death was the first to move and slammed the door on the girls' faces. He really had enough at home already, he didn't want anymore now. But that didn't mean he was popular from where he came from, no, he just attracted too much attention to himself with his abilities…and maybe with a little of his looks.

Mighty, the blond-haired student's name, looked so energetic about the whole match and instantly shouted. "Let the match begin! I'll beat your sorry butt!"

"I'm not going to lose!" Genis glared and the two went to find their seats which happened to be close to each other.

An old man shook his head, pushing up his glasses further up on his nose and gathered the papers on his desk. He was the dean of the school and looked over the group as well as the two students. "I've heard what's going on. In the interest of fairness, I prepared the questions. Now take your seats."

As Raine headed up the stairs so she could get behind the two students that were competing, she spoke to the others. "The rest of you go ahead and take the test as well."

Lloyd definitely didn't like that idea. "What? Me, too?" He appeared to be trying to back towards the door but before he could make an escape, Kratos blocked it off. He groaned.

Raine sighed at her student's behavior. "Well…just try it out."

Death helped in pulling the struggling twin swordsmen to his seat and Kratos took a seat behind him while Death was on the same row but three seats away. Colette sat close to Lloyd with a smile on her face and Lloyd groaned louder.

"Just put up with it, Lloyd. We're here to encourage Genis not make him nervous." Death commented from the back. "So just take the damn thing. It's not as if the paper will come alive and eat you."

"You never know! It could!" Lloyd cried out, now looking panicking.

"Just shut up and take the fucking test!"

The dean passed out the thick papers and Death stared long and hard at the sheet of paper or booklet… This was going to take a while. "Begin!"

* * *

Death glanced around the testing room. He had just finished one section and felt like taking a break. His eyes wandered around the room, watching everyone work and then towards the front of the room where he could see the dean of the school watching the group intensely especially Mighty and Genis. He managed to catch eyes with the gruff man and waved, looking bored. The teacher narrowed his own and turned away, looking down at the stop clock. Death went back to looking around, not paying a single amount of attention to the test and finally rested on the window where he could see the seagulls and ocean. The birds were flying around, squawking loudly in the sky which was clear and blue, not a single cloud was up there. He sighed, glancing back down at the papers with boredom. His gloved fingers ran over the pages and flipped to the next section, math and science. The previous one had been about language, mostly grammar and spelling. It had been too easy in his mind and had finished it (all 100 questions) within 30 minutes that is if he could count the first hour that he wasted by going to sleep. 'Well, better get back to work' Death thought as he lifted up his pencil and began working the problems with a dozy look.

* * *

The cough came through the chattering class. The dean had collected all the papers and was grading them in a different room, leaving the group by themselves. Lloyd chatted with Colette and Genis while Kratos gazed over the classroom, finding nothing anything interesting. Death just kept his heed down and slowly picked it up as he heard footsteps and yawned when the door opened. The dean came back in with all the graded papers and everyone instantly turned to the front for answers. Genis and Mighty were at then edge of their seats in anticipation.

"I will announce the results. First last pace is Lloyd Irving with 25." The dean pushed his glasses up in disappointment. "Lloyd just to let you know, the answer to what type of species of a lily is not a rabbit…"

But this didn't seem to cut down Lloyd's happiness. "Whoa! I got a 25!" He seemed to be _too_ happy with that grade. Genis and Raine couldn't help but throw a look and Death drummed his fingers in irritation. Kratos narrowed his eyes.

Colette, however, seemed to share Lloyd's cheeriness. "That's your best yet, Lloyd! Congratulations!"

Death sent a pitying look at his younger self and slammed his head on the table. Lloyd ignored everything. "Heh heh."

The dean continued. "The next one in Death Irving with-"

"Hey! Wait, my last name isn't Irving…" Death muttered out loud, cutting off the old man.

The man glared and went on. "Death with the score of 200."

Lloyd looked shock at this. "Huh? It's not out of 100?"

"…It's out of 400." Genis whispered from the side, feeling embarrassed for his friend.

The red-clad teen grumbled then turned to Death. "You got more than I did…"

"I'm older."

"As well as lazy." The dean commented up front. "You answered only the first two sections and not the other two. Everything was correct, not a single answer wrong but you didn't bother in finishing the rest of them. If you had you might have gotten a higher grade. However, by the looks of it, you just put down an answer without doing any work and got them all right. That's amazing. You could be a genius if you could get over that lazy attitude. I saw you sleeping the entire time." Death threw a smile in his direction. "Now the rest are Colette Brunnel with 210."

Death blinked. "Hmm…that's mean Colette got a 52.5 in grade, me a 50, and Lloyd with a measly 6.25. Funny…"

The three adults in the room turned to him but the dean continued. "Kratos Aurion with 380 and Raine Sage with 400."

"Not like we expected anything but perfection from the Professor." Lloyd groaned but still happy in his teacher.

"Now I shall announce the scores of Genis and Mighty. Mighty Washington: 398." The blond-haired student was looking quite smug at that. "And Genis Sage: 400."

There was a sound of cheers from Lloyd and Colette. Death blinked his eyes and placed his head back on the table, drowning out the rest. He didn't need to listen anymore, it's not as if it's being directed to him. Kratos nudged him at the side, trying to get his attention and mouthed a few words, meaning 'Pay attention'. Death could only smile in return and looked at the group but didn't listen in on what they were saying. He had a feeling he was going to get lectured for his laziness after this.

* * *

"Lloyd, you're an idiot." Genis sighed. "How could you only get 25 out of 400, that's impossible unless you did it purposefully."

"Yes, I'm very disappointed in you." Raine looked rather sad but she should have known better than to believe that all her teaching would have had an effect. Then she turned to Death, who didn't look concern about his younger self. "And you! You purposefully skipped over the last two sections, didn't you? The reading and history one. I can't blame you for the history but why didn't you do the other?"

"I wanted to sleep." Death yawned, stretching his arms. "It takes too long to do that one and I did look at it but all those passages weren't really good so I didn't go any further."

"You're just lazy! And you even got all the others right! You didn't miss a single one! You could have gotten a much better score!"

"Why go through the trouble when there is nothing in return for me. Anyway, I was tired."

"Well, you just got something in return for being lazy. You now have to do homework just like everyone else." Raine scolded.

Death yawned again. "Okay, whatever. I don't care. You would have given it to me sooner or later." He let his eyes droop further, it was obvious that he looked like he was going to crash soon. The chosen tilted her head as she noticed the drooping eyes.

"You look exhausted. Are you sure you've been sleeping well?" Colette muttered, noticing the fatigue on Death's face.

"Yeah, just not well enough."

"Why not?"

"Can't sleep."

"Do you have some problems?" Raine questioned, her mind no longer on scolding but instead on worrying.

"Something like that but I don't really want to go into the explanation." The look-alike muttered, scratching the back of his head. "Death doesn't sleep after all."

This seemed to spark something.

"Hey, why _do_ you call yourself 'Death'?"

Death paused. He wasn't sure of who had said it but it made him freeze. He turned back to the group that were all staring at him strangely. They wanted answers and he wasn't sure if he'll be able to give it to them.

"Why do you want to know?" Death asked, still not sure on how to answer.

"I found it odd that you would call yourself after such a scary being. Not unless you have some dark secrets." Raine answered, apparently, it had been her who had asked.

"I mean." Colette continued. "You're name is Lloyd, right? Why can't we call you that or even Irving. Wouldn't that be better? Death is kinda…"

"Dark?" He finished for her and then chuckled cruelly. "Hmm…don't know. People have been calling me that for a long time that it just sticks. Plus, my last name isn't Irving, it never was, perhaps a long time ago I was once called that but no longer." Death sighed, his shoulders slumping at the memory and slowly walked ahead, his scarf fluttering behind. He smiled sadly, his thoughts lost and he wanted nothing more than to disappear, than to leave this miserable planet. His red eyes turned to the group, watching their confused faces before continuing on, heading back to the room for some rest, not that it would ever come to him easily. He really wanted to close his eyes for a short time but that wasn't going to happen anytime soon and he knew that. Death groaned mentally and went on.

Everyone else looked at each other, wondering what had happened. They wanted to ask Death why his last name wasn't Irving but the dark look on his face had sent everyone into silence. They could always ask later when he was in a better mood.

* * *

Death woke up with a start, he sat up instantly and glanced around the area with caution. His red eyes surveyed around once more, feeling a cold sweat run down his back. He turned to the campsite fire and took a deep breath. Everyone was asleep except for Kratos, who was the night watch as usual. The red head looked over towards him in surprise from the noise he had created.

The red read blinked. "Is something wrong?"

Death didn't answer right away. "…No." His eyes closed and leaned forward to run a hand through his hair. He smoothed it back and tried to relax his beating heart that was currently pounding in his chest. His skin color was paler than usual and little droplets of water dripped down his checks and he looked so sickly. Death mentally growled, why had he been so startled? That had never happened before. His eyes darkened slightly and glared at the ground.

Kratos stood up from his spot and walked over to the other, kneeling down in front. "What's wrong?" He had apparently not believed him and glanced over the man before him with a slightly worried look.

"I'm fine." Death muttered with a slightly tired tone. He was so drowsy but with his body in such disarray, sleep wouldn't be coming to him anytime soon. He cursed this fact and groaned silently but Kratos could see his suffering. He placed a hand on Death's shoulder and for a moment, Death felt completely shocked. His father, well not exactly his own father, was showing kindness to him… His first reaction was to shove the hand away but reconsidered at the last moment. "Really, I'm fine. There's no need to worry about me."

Kratos kept quiet but he didn't believe a single word. "You don't look fine. You look like you're about to faint."

Death smirked. "No, I'm really fine." He waved his hand. He had succeeded in calming down his heart and sighed peacefully. There was really no way he was going to sleep anytime soon. Kratos seemed to notice this too. "I'm going to sit near the fire for a while." He stood up, pushing Kratos away and sat down even closer, feeling the warmth hit his cold limbs. His expression was blank and he watched the wood burn crisply. Kratos followed soon after, settling next to the man.

"You look pale."

"I'm always pale."

"Not _this_ pale." Kratos stated, his hair covering his eyes.

Death looked over with annoyance. "Will you stop already? I said I'm fine. Why are you still pestering me?"

"Hmmm…" Kratos didn't respond and seemed to have ignored it. His eyes stared a head into the fire with the light coloring his face vividly. Death sighed, rubbing the back of his head, raking through his dark drown locks. "I believe…" Kratos suddenly started. "I believe that you already know the answer."

The look-alike growled, he should have never given himself away that he knew about Kratos being his father. "Don't expect me to start calling you 'Dad' or 'Father' cuz that's not my job, it's the one behinds us."

"I know that."

Death managed to catch a hint of sadness in Kratos' voice and exhaled. Damn his soft heart. He reached over and yanked Kratos closer to his body. This action threw the other off. "Even if we're not really father and son, you can still treat me like one. I don't mind."

Kratos chuckled, letting out a small smile. "Thank you but I don't think you'd be very comfortable with that. You look like you want to run away right now." He could tell by how tight the other was holding him and the twitching eye. Death was nervous.

The look-alike laughed quietly. "I know, I'm not used to showing this type of affection but I'm not _that_ cruel." Death pulled away slightly, rubbing his arms. "I can not help you but I can only give you a push that wouldn't be a bad start."

Kratos glanced over, not sure at how to react. "Thank you."

Death remained still and watched the fire for the rest of the night with Kratos at his side, silently staring.

* * *

The list of attacks Death has used so far.

**Negative Gate** - It's the same attack that Anise in Tales of the abyss uses.

**Barrier** – It creates a powerful shield that seems to be made of some sort of glass or crystal that surrounds the summoner. It's nearly unbreakable and it shatters when its time runs out or when the summoner cancels it.

**Reaper's Upbringing** – This spell summons the dead and demons to arise from the underworld that spins in a spiral, hiding everything inside from those out. The souls of those getting punished scream in high pitch and bitterly while the demons are heard laughing. This attack is meant to scare people as well as use the spiral to cut anything within its hold in pieces. But since it was used on Sword Dancer, it merely destroyed the bones.


End file.
